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Multiferroic materials have important research significance in the fields of magnetic random-access memory, ferroelectric random-access memory, resistive random-access memory, and neuromorphic computing devices due to their excellent and diverse physical properties. In this work, a solution of Bi2FeMnO6 was prepared using a solution-based method, and an Au/Bi2FeMnO6/TiO2 heterostructure device was fabricated on a Si substrate. X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy data indicate that the Bi2FeMnO6 films have hexagonal R3c symmetry structures. The Bi2FeMnO6 film exhibits ferroelectricity with a fine remanent polarization. In addition, the Bi2FeMnO6-based devices have excellent switching ratios of 6.37 × 105. A larger switching ratio can provide a multi-resistance state for the device, which is beneficial for the simulation of synapses. Hence, it effectively emulates excitatory postsynaptic currents, paired-pulse facilitation, and long-term plasticity of synapses and achieves recognition accuracy of 95% in neuromorphic computing. We report a promising material for the development of various nonvolatile memories and neuromorphic synaptic devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In [4] , Guan, Murugan and Wei established the equivalence of the classical Helmholtz equation with a "fractional Helmholtz" equation in which the Laplacian operator is replaced by the nonlocal fractional Laplacian operator. More general equivalence results are obtained for symbols which are complete Bernstein and satisfy additional regularity conditions. In this work we introduce a novel and general set-up for this Helmholtz equivalence problem. We show that under very mild and easy-to-check conditions on the Fourier multiplier, the general Helmholtz equation can be effectively reduced to a localization statement on the support of the symbol. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: We evaluated the relationship of bone mineral density (BMD) by computed tomography (CT), to predict fractures in a multi-ethnic population. We demonstrated that vertebral and hip fractures were more likely in those patients with low BMD. This is one of the first studies to demonstrate that CT BMD derived from thoracic vertebrae can predict future hip and vertebral fractures. Purpose/Introduction: Osteoporosis affects an enormous number of patients, of all races and both sexes, and its prevalence increases as the population ages. Few studies have evaluated the association between the vertebral trabecular bone mineral density(vBMD) and osteoporosis-related hip fracture in a multiethnic population, and no studies have demonstrated the predictive value of vBMD for fractures. Method: We sought to determine the predictive value of QCT-based trabecular vBMD of thoracic vertebrae derived from coronary artery calcium scan for hip fractures in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis(MESA), a nationwide multicenter cohort included 6814 people from six medical centers across the USA and assess if low bone density by QCT can predict future fractures. Measures were done using trabecular bone measures, adjusted for individual patients, from three consecutive thoracic vertebrae (BDI Inc, Manhattan Beach CA, USA) from non-contrast cardiac CT scans. Results: Six thousand eight hundred fourteen MESA baseline participants were included with a mean age of 62.2 ± 10.2 years, and 52.8% were women. The mean thoracic BMD is 162.6 ± 46.8 mg/cm3 (95% CI 161.5, 163.7), and 27.6% of participants (n = 1883) had osteoporosis (T-score 2.5 or lower). Over a median follow-up of 17.4 years, Caucasians have a higher rate of vertebral fractures (6.9%), followed by Blacks (4.4%), Hispanics (3.7%), and Chinese (3.0%). Hip fracture patients had a lower baseline vBMD as measured by QCT than the non-hip fracture group by 13.6 mg/cm3 [P < 0.001]. The same pattern was seen in the vertebral fracture population, where the mean BMD was substantially lower 18.3 mg/cm3 [P < 0.001] than in the non-vertebral fracture population. Notably, the above substantial relationship was unaffected by age, gender, race, BMI, hypertension, current smoking, medication use, or activity. Patients with low trabecular BMD of thoracic vertebrae showed a 1.57-fold greater risk of first hip fracture (HR 1.57, 95% CI 1.38–1.95) and a nearly threefold increased risk of first vertebral fracture (HR 2.93, 95% CI 1.87–4.59) compared to normal BMD patients. Conclusion: There is significant correlation between thoracic trabecular BMD and the incidence of future hip and vertebral fracture. This study demonstrates that thoracic vertebrae BMD, as measured on cardiac CT (QCT), can predict both hip and vertebral fractures without additional radiation, scanning, or patient burden. Osteopenia and osteoporosis are markedly underdiagnosed. Finding occult disease affords the opportunity to treat the millions of people undergoing CT scans every year for other indications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wolbachia are intracellular symbiotic bacteria widely distributed in arthropods. Many studies have focused on the effects of Wolbachia infection on host reproduction; however, the effects of Wolbachia on the neurobehaviour of hosts are largely unknown, despite their distribution in the host brain. As a virulent strain of Wolbachia , w MelPop can rapidly proliferate in adult tissues, including the brain, implying the potential to impact neurobehaviour in insect hosts. In this study, using the conditioning and testing protocol with sugar reward, we found that despite being virulent, w MelPop infection improves both short- and long-term memory in Drosophila melanogaster. By RNA sequencing (RNA-seq), we compared the transcription profiles of 4∼6-day-old fly heads with and without w MelPop and identified 1284 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) as having a significant and at least a two-fold change in expression, of which 675 genes were upregulated and 609 were downregulated in the presence of w MelPop. Surprisingly, except for involvement in proteolysis and immune responses, many of the DEGs were associated with reproductive behaviour, especially the regulation of female postmating responses. When compared with RNA-seq data from 4∼6-day-old w Mel-infected fly heads, we found that both groups shared 421 DEGs. Fifteen genes were selected for quantitative RT-PCR. Twelve genes showed the same changes as RNA-seq analyses. These results suggest that w MelPop infection in Drosophila might enhance the insect host's memory by altering host gene expressions in the head. As w MelPop has been demonstrated to be the strongest Dengue blocking strain known, the behavioural and ecological consequences of w MelPop infection in the insect hosts may be of great importance in controlling insect-borne diseases and agricultural pests. Our data also provide a significant panel of candidate genes to help elucidate the underlying mechanisms of Wolbachia -induced neurobehavioural alterations in arthropod hosts. • The virulent w MelPop can improve the learning and memory capacity of Drosophila. • RNA-seq identified 1 284 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in fly heads. • w MelPop and w Mel Wolbachia induce 421 common DEGs in fly heads. • The DEGs include some seminal fluid protein coding genes, such as EbpII. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Successful deployment of convolutional neural networks on resource-constrained hardware platforms is challenging for ubiquitous AI applications. For latency-sensitive scenarios, real-time inference requires model compression techniques such as network pruning to achieve the purpose of inference acceleration. However, many researches focus on hardware-independent filter pruning methods, which cannot balance the contribution of pruned structure to latency and the accuracy drop. Although some pruning methods have introduced latency constraints into the pruning process, most of them are based on look-up tables, which omits the key step of hardware optimization, resulting in significant deviation in latency estimation. In this paper, we propose a novel latency-constrained pruning method, named hardware-in-loop pruning (HILP). It is based on the fast optimal pruning rate search within the layer and layer-wise hybrid pruning, which can prioritize removing the less important layers with considerable latency contributions. The proposed hardware-in-loop pipeline enables the hardware optimization module to be integrated into the entire framework. During pruning, an intermediate network architecture is automatically transformed to a deployable model for accurate latency measurement. The latency-optimized intermediate architecture is then selected by traversing all layers for next progressive step. HILP is generally applicable to any platform that provides a hardware optimization toolchain, such as NVIDIA GPU and Cambricon NPU. We evaluate HILP on both image classification task using ResNet50 with ImageNet and object detection task using YOLOv3 with COCO, HILP can reduce the inference latency of these two networks to 60% and 75%, respectively, within the range of accuracy variation not exceeding 0.6%. Extensive experiment results have proven that HILP is able to achieve a significant advantage in latency-accuracy performance compared to state-of-the-art methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The imperative for continuous device miniaturization has heightened the need for logic reconfigurability due to its benefits in circuit design simplification and process optimization. Van der Waals ambipolar transistors, notable for their inherent reconfigurable characteristics, have garnered significant interest for their potential to revolutionize information electronics. Nevertheless, as the semiconductor thickness approaches the 3-nm mark, precise modulation of electrical polarity presents a considerable challenge as minor variations in thickness can lead to significant electrical disparities. Here, we introduce a silicon backend process-compatible approach by employing surface charge transfer doping to skillfully adjust the polarity in ambipolar transistors. This universal method can achieve a controllable p-type doping effect and good electrical symmetry in ambipolar semiconductors. Through careful calibration of the MoO3 dopant layer thickness, we significantly enhance the hole mobility in doped WSe2 field-effect transistors (FETs), increasing it from 8 to 100 cm2 V−1 s−1, surpassing the performance of most non-silicon p-type semiconductors. A thorough temperature-dependent doping characterization elucidates the deeper traps-induced Schottky barrier variation for hole transport, and a reduction in current fluctuation for electron transport in WSe2/MoO3 FETs. Leveraging the precision in electrical polarity control, we demonstrate a complementary logic inverter by integrating two doped ambipolar FETs on a single monolithic channel. This advancement paves the way for quasi-forksheet structures and underscores the benefits in evolving advanced processing technologies, steering toward scalable, cost-effective, and efficient electronic device fabrication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Antibodies play a central role in the adaptive immune response of vertebrates through the specific recognition of exogenous or endogenous antigens. The rational design of antibodies has a wide range of biotechnological and medical applications, such as in disease diagnosis and treatment. However, there are currently no reliable methods for predicting the antibodies that recognize a specific antigen region (or epitope) and, conversely, epitopes that recognize the binding region of a given antibody (or paratope). To fill this gap, we developed ImaPEp, a machine learning-based tool for predicting the binding probability of paratope–epitope pairs, where the epitope and paratope patches were simplified into interacting two-dimensional patches, which were colored according to the values of selected features, and pixelated. The specific recognition of an epitope image by a paratope image was achieved by using a convolutional neural network-based model, which was trained on a set of two-dimensional paratope–epitope images derived from experimental structures of antibody–antigen complexes. Our method achieves good performances in terms of cross-validation with a balanced accuracy of 0.8. Finally, we showcase examples of application of ImaPep, including extensive screening of large libraries to identify paratope candidates that bind to a selected epitope, and rescoring and refining antibody–antigen docking poses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the increasing demand for electricity, the power grid is undergoing significant advancements. Insulators, which serve as protective devices for transmission lines in outdoor high-altitude power systems, are widely employed. However, the detection of defects in insulators captured under challenging conditions, such as rain, snow, fog, sunlight, and fast-moving drones during long-distance photography, remains a major challenge. To address this issue and improve the accuracy of defect detection, this paper presents a novel approach: the Multi-Scale Insulator Defect Detection Approach using Detection Transformer (DETR). In this study, we propose a multi-scale backbone network that effectively captures the features of small objects, enhancing the detection performance. Additionally, we introduce a self-attention upsampling (SAU) module to replace the conventional attention module, enhancing contextual information extraction and facilitating the detection of small objects. Furthermore, we introduce the insulator defect (IDIoU) loss, which mitigates the instability in the matching process caused by small defects. Extensive experiments were conducted on an insulator defect dataset to evaluate the performance of our proposed method. The results demonstrate that our approach achieves outstanding performance, particularly in detecting small defects. Compared to existing methods, our approach exhibits a remarkable 7.47% increase in the average precision, emphasizing its efficacy in insulator defect detection. The proposed method not only enhances the accuracy of defect detection, which is crucial for maintaining the reliability and safety of power transmission systems but also has broader implications for the maintenance and inspection of high-voltage power infrastructure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two-dimensional (2D) multiferroic materials are currently in high demand due to their significant potential for applications in the field of high-density data storage devices. However, due to the different requirements for generating ferroelectricity and magnetism, 2D multiferroic materials are rare. In this study, we propose that applying strain can induce magnetism in 2D ferroelectric materials with special electronic structures, thereby creating 2D multiferroics. Taking 2D ZnIn2S4 as an example, it shows robust ferroelectricity with an appropriate switching barrier (79.3 meV), and the out-of-plane ferroelectric polarization is 0.0322 C/m2. Applying biaxial tensile strain can change the energy of the flatband near the Fermi level, ultimately resulting in self-doping phenomena and leading to Stoner-type itinerant ferromagnetism. The reversal of ferroelectric polarization in ZnIn2S4 bilayer and ZnIn2S4–In2Se3 heterostructure can manipulate the magnetic moment of the system, exhibiting significant magnetoelectric coupling phenomena. Our findings provide a pathway for designing 2D ferromagnetic and multiferroic materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Neupert effect refers to the strong correlation between the soft X-ray (SXR) light curve and the time-integrated hard X-ray (HXR) or microwave flux, which is frequently observed in solar flares. In this article, we therefore utilized the newly launched Hard X-ray Imager (HXI) on board the Advanced Space-based Solar Observatory to investigate the Neupert effect during solar flares. By checking the HXR light curves at 20 – 50 keV, a sample of 149 events that cover the flare impulsive phase were selected. Then, we performed a crosscorrelation analysis between the HXR fluence (i.e., the time integral of the HXR flux) and the SXR 1 – 8 Å flux measured by the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite. All the selected flares show high correlation coefficients (>0.90), which seem to be independent of the flare location and class. The HXR fluences tend to increase linearly with the SXR peak fluxes. Our observations indicate that all the selected flares obey the Neupert effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gaps represent a common feature on the surface of supersonic vehicles, and their presence engenders localized thermal phenomena, including elevated heat flux and thermal invasion. These occurrences significantly imperil the aircraft's thermal stability and safety. This study employs numerical simulation to investigate supersonic streamwise gap flow and offers a comprehensive analysis of the impact of geometric and leakage on the distribution of wall heat flux. The computational results manifest a high alignment between regions of high heat flux and high Mach number. Consequently, these findings underscore the pivotal role of convective heat transfer governing the distribution of heat flux within the gap. Most notably, the sensitivity of wall heat flux is most pronounced with respect to gap width. A reduction in gap width yields a substantial reduction in wall heat flux, with this alteration primarily stemming from its impact on the shear interactions between the supersonic mainstream and the vortices within the gaps. Furthermore, changes in gap length influence the invasion characteristics of the supersonic mainstream, thereby instigating consequential shifts in the distribution of heat flux density along the inner surfaces of the gaps. In contrast, variations in gap depth exert a comparatively modest impact on the distribution of heat flux density. The introduction of leakage effects at the base of the gaps results in a significant intensification of supersonic mainstream penetration and concomitant convective heat transfer in the bottom exit region. This phenomenon engenders localized zones characterized by elevated heat flux density, thus severely compromising the aircraft's thermal sealing performance. • Thermal environments within streamwise gaps in supersonic flow are investigated. • Influences of geometries on the distribution of wall heat flux are analyzed. • Mechanisms by which changes in vortex affect the thermal environment are revealed. • Effects of potential bottom leakage on thermal invasion are evaluated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The data collected by ocean‐bottom seismometers are unique compared to that of land seismic stations and require preprocessing before use. In this study, we focus on preprocessing seismic data obtained from a passive‐source experiment in the Mariana subduction zone conducted by the Institute of Deep‐Sea Science and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences from 2018 to 2019. We outline the steps involved in preprocessing the data, including time correction using the ocean background noise cross‐correlation function, tilt correction using a transfer function and orientation correction based on seismic wave polarization. Our results show that the maximum clock drifting was ∼4 s on two stations (K06 and K20), whereas the rest of the station waveforms have clock drifting of less than 2 s. Among stations, only the K06 station is tilted, and the tilt angle is 19.82°. We use the P‐wave and Rayleigh wave polarization methods to determine the orientation. Our results indicate that the error in the result obtained using the P‐wave polarization method is less than that of the Rayleigh wave polarization method. Additionally, we address the advantages and disadvantages of these preprocessing techniques. Our goal is to offer a comprehensive overview of the preprocessing process, to assist beginners in the field and to serve as a foundation for future research in passive‐source ocean‐bottom seismometers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For practicable elastomeric polyethylene, achieving high catalyst thermal stability and activity, along with precise control of polymer properties such as branching density, molecular weights, and distribution, is crucial but challenging. In this study, two sets of symmetrical α-diimine nickel complexes, each comprising four nickel bromide or chloride complexes, were synthesized and investigated their performance for ethylene polymerization under various reaction conditions. Upon activation with either Et2AlCl or MMAO cocatalysts, these complexes displayed not only high activity but also generated high molecular weight polyethylenes with controlled polydispersity and a substantial number of branches. The catalyst with the least steric hindrance displayed the remarkable high activity (up to 1.2×107 g·mol−1·h−1). Notably, nickel bromides demonstrated higher activity compared to their chloride counterparts. The investigation into the effect of reaction temperature on catalytic performance revealed that NiBrMe-MMAO system displayed high thermal stability (activity up to 2.51×106 g·mol−1·h−1 at 100 °C) and consistently yielded high polymer molecular weights with narrow polydispersity over a broad temperature range of 30–100 °C. Of significant note, mechanical analysis of the resulting polyethylene demonstrated excellent ultimate tensile strength and high strain at break. Particularly, the polyethylene sample prepared at 100 °C exhibited ultimate tensile strength up to 10 MPa with 1863% maximum strain at break and a strain recovery of up to 54.9% after ten cycles at a fixed strain of 300%, indicating excellent material properties of prepared thermoplastic polyethylene elastomers (TPE). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article introduces a new subclass of nonlinear moving average model, called the smooth transition moving average (STMA) model, and studies its probabilistic properties. It is shown that, under some mild conditions, the least squares estimation (LSE) is strongly consistent and asymptotically normal. A powerful score‐based goodness‐of‐fit test for the STMA model is presented. A different parametrization from the classical one is applied to numerically improve the identification and estimation of this model. Simulation studies are conducted to assess the performance of the LSE and the score‐based test in finite samples. The results are illustrated with an application to the weekly exchange rate of the USA Dollar to the British Pound. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS) has been increasingly applied in sepsis. We aimed to evaluate the diagnostic and therapeutic utility of mNGS of paired plasma and peritoneal drainage (PD) fluid samples in comparison to culture-based microbiological tests (CMTs) among critically ill patients with suspected acute intra-abdominal infections (IAIs). Methods: We conducted a prospective study from October 2021 to December 2022 enrolling septic patients with suspected IAIs (n = 111). Pairwise CMTs and mNGS of plasma and PD fluid were sent for pathogen detection. The mNGS group underwent therapeutic regimen adjustment based on mNGS results for better treatment. The microbial community structure, clinical features, antibiotic use and prognoses of the patients were analyzed. Results: Higher positivity rates were observed with mNGS versus CMTs for both PD fluid (90.0% vs. 48.3%, p < 0.005) and plasma (76.7% vs. 1.6%, p < 0.005). 90% of enrolled patients had clues of suspected pathogens combining mNGS and CMT methods. Gram-negative pathogens consist of most intra-abdominal pathogens, including a great variety of anaerobes represented by Bacteroides and Clostridium. Patients with matched plasma- and PD-mNGS results had higher mortality and sepsis severity. Reduced usage of carbapenem (30.0% vs. 49.4%, p < 0.05) and duration of anti-MRSA treatment (5.1 ± 3.3 vs. 7.0 ± 8.4 days, p < 0.05) was shown in the mNGS group in our study. Conclusions: Pairwise plasma and PD fluid mNGS improves microbiological diagnosis compared to CMTs for acute IAI. Combining plasma and PD mNGS could predict poor prognosis. mNGS may enable optimize empirical antibiotic use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study is to develop a systematic meso‐level theoretical modeling approach for analyzing the mode‐I fracture failure behaviors of concrete. Firstly, the crack model is developed in a way to be equivalent to the continuum model at the macro‐level. Secondly, an extended universal morphological model (XUMM) for concrete mode‐I fracture analysis is proposed at the meso‐level. Afterwards, both the mesoscopic fracture characteristics and the macroscopic mechanical parameters of concrete are theoretically deduced based on the proposed XUMM. Comparison with existing meso‐level test results shows that the predictions from the XUMM have good consistency, but offsets are obvious as well. At last, the XUMM is calibrated using the limit state method and preliminarily verified via mesoscale numerical simulations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hip fractures are a significant cause of mortality among older adults. However, predictive markers for an unfavorable prognosis are still lacking. Serum calcium is an essential element in several biochemical reactions in the body. This study investigated the role of the preoperative serum calcium level as a prognostic parameter for postoperative mortality in older adult patients with hip fractures. We conducted a prospective cohort study at the trauma center in our hospital, from January 1, 2015, to September 30, 2019. A total of 2333 older patients with hip fractures were recruited. This prospective cohort study was conducted in accordance with the criteria of STROCSS. Older adult patients with hip fractures were screened between January 2015 and September 2019 at the trauma center of our hospital. Demographic and clinical characteristics of the patients were collected. Linear and nonlinear multivariate Cox regression models were used to identify the association between preoperative serum calcium level and all-cause mortality. All analyses were performed using EmpowerStats and the R software. A total of 2333 older adult patients with hip fractures were included in the study. The mean follow-up was 37.5 months. Overall, 770 patients (33%) died of all causes. The preoperative serum calcium concentrations were 2.18 ± 0.13 mmol/L. Linear multivariate Cox regression models showed that preoperative serum calcium levels were associated with mortality [hazard ratio (HR) 0.37, 95% CI 0.21-0.67; P =.0009] after adjusting for confounders. However, the linear association was unstable, and nonlinearity was identified. A preoperative serum calcium level of 2.3 mmol/L was an inflection point for prediction. When the preoperative serum calcium concentration was below 2.3 mmol/L, serum calcium concentration increased by 1 mmol/L, and mortality risk decreased by 77% (HR 0.23, 95% CI 0.13-0.43, P <.0001). In contrast, when the preoperative serum calcium concentration was more significant than 2.3 mmol/L, the mortality risk increased with serum calcium concentration (HR 6.27, 95% CI 1.65-23.74, P =.0069). The preoperative serum calcium level is nonlinearly associated with mortality in older adults with hip fractures, with a U-shaped association, and could be used as a potential predictor of prognosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We developeda facile method to construct flexible, freestanding three dimensional hierarchical electrodes that consist of graphene encapsulated one-dimensional conducting polyaniline (PANi)@MnO2 coaxial nanowires grown on electrospun carbon nanofibers (denoted as G-PANi@MnO2/ECNFs). A combination of XRD, SEM, and TEM techniques were used to characterize the structures of G‑PANi@MnO2/ECNFs. Electrochemical measurements confirmed that such nanostructured composites possessed higher electrochemical capacitance than that of each individual component due to synergistic effects. The G-PANi@MnO2/ECNFs electrode exhibited extremely high specific capacitance (1364.3 F/g at 0.3 A/g) and superior cycling stability (89.2% retention rate after 2000 cycles) in a 1 M Na2SO4 aqueous solution. The excellent electrochemical performance of such nanoscale architectured electrodes provides a new route to develop flexible, freestanding, and high-performance supercapacitors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microwave drying (MWD) is an efficient dielectric drying method in food, with advantages such as volumetric heating, fast drying, safety, and good product quality. As a key indicator of a dryer's market value, energy efficiency is of concern to sellers and dryer manufacturers. This paper systematically reviewed the quantification methods and influencing factors of energy efficiency of microwave drying in food application from different perspectives. Mechanisms and possible improvements of these factors are highlighted. Future trends in improving the energy efficiency of MWD are proposed. Energy consumption of MWD depends on a variety of factors such as equipment structure, drying conditions (microwave power, frequency, temperature, and air velocity), material properties, and combined/hybrid drying technologies. The drying system can be effectively improved if these parameters are adjusted appropriately and taking the processing cost into consideration. Although a good product can be obtained by pretreatment or combined/hybrid drying method, it may consume more energy. Future research should develop artificial intelligence, renewable energy, and computational fluid dynamics technology to pave the way for large-scale application of MWD and reduce energy consumption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposed a two-dimensional composite square lattice structure containing two kinds of inclusions (polymethylmethacrylate and T2 copper). To maximize the relative widths of the gaps between the adjacent energy bands of the phononic crystals (PnCs), an improved multi-parameter genetic algorithm was adopted in this paper. The material distribution and ligament sizes were considered simultaneously by ternary encoding and binary encoding. The propagation wave behaviors of the composite lattice structures were studied by the finite element method. The effects of different lattice shapes and other relevant influencing parameters on the bandgaps were discussed. The results showed that the lattice shape, ligament width, and material density affect the width and the location of the bandgaps, and the effectiveness of the proposed method was demonstrated by a transmission spectrum experiment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hydraulic conductivity tests were conducted on six bentonite-polymer (B–P) geosynthetic clay liners (GCLs) to investigate the effect of the slow cation exchange process and polymer elution on the long-term hydraulic conductivity of B–P GCLs. Tests were conducted up to 1458 days and as many as 443 pore volumes of flows (PVFs). Three B–P GCLs consist of linear polymer whereas the other three have crosslinked polymer. One sodium geosynthetic clay liner (Na–B GCL) was used as a control. Hydraulic conductivities (K 6766) of B–P GCLs (5.4 × 10−12 m/s to 3.7 × 10−11 m/s) per ASTM D6766 were approximately 2-3 orders of magnitude lower than that of Na–B GCL (2.3 × 10−9 m/s to 3.5 × 10−9 m/s). Tests were continued after hydraulic and chemical equilibrium to investigate the long-term hydraulic conductivity of GCLs. Hydraulic conductivities of GCLs had an increasing trend after hydraulic and chemical equilibrium. The ratio of K L /K 6766 for B–P GCLs was 3.5–14.7, whereas ratio of K L /K 6766 for Na–B GCLs was 1.0–1.7. Total organic carbon (TOC) tests results confirmed that polymer elution occurred during the entire permeation process. The higher ratio of K L /K 6766 for B–P GCLs was attributed to the effect of polymer elution. • Hydraulic conductivity tests were conducted up to 4 years to test long-term hydraulic conductivity of B–P GCLs. • The ratios of K L /K 6766 for B–P GCLs to synthetic CCP leachate were higher than that of Na–B GCLs (e.g., 3.5 to 14.7 vs. 1.7). • Polymer elution from B–P GCLs affects the long-term hydraulic conductivity of B–P GCLs. • The polymer elution should be measured and considered as an additional termination criterion in ASTM D6766. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A CsPbBr3@Ag-C3N4 ternary heterojunction photocatalyst with g-C3N4 as ballistic electron transport "tunnel" is designed and synthesized. The photogenerated electrons of CsPbBr3 dots can be efficiently transferred to Ag nanoparticles via g-C3N4 sheets, resulting in efficient CO2 reduction. The structured design of catalyst provides a novel insight for the development of perovskite-based photocatalysts. [Display omitted] • CsPbBr 3 @Ag-C 3 N 4 ternary heterojunction photocatalyst is designed and synthesized. • The photogenerated electrons of CsPbBr 3 QDs can be efficiently transferred to Ag nanoparticles via g-C 3 N 4 as the electron transport tunnel. • The CsPbBr 3 @Ag-C 3 N 4 ternary photocatalyst achieves a conversion rate of 19.49 μmol·g−1·h−1 with almost 100 % CO selectivity. • In situ DRIFT and DFT calculations reveal the photocatalytic mechanism for CO 2 reduction. Perovskite CsPbBr 3 quantum dot shows great potential in artificial photosynthesis, attributed to its outstanding optoelectronic properties. Nevertheless, its photocatalytic activity is hindered by insufficient catalytic active sites and severe charge recombination. In this work, a CsPbBr 3 @Ag-C 3 N 4 ternary heterojunction photocatalyst is designed and synthesized for high-efficiency CO 2 reduction. The CsPbBr 3 quantum dots and Ag nanoparticles are chemically anchored on the surface of g-C 3 N 4 sheets, forming an electron transfer tunnel from CsPbBr 3 quantum dots to Ag nanoparticles via g-C 3 N 4 sheets. The resulting CsPbBr 3 @Ag-C 3 N 4 ternary photocatalyst, with spatial separation of photogenerated carriers, achieves a remarkable conversion rate of 19.49 μmol·g−1·h−1 with almost 100 % CO selectivity, a 3.13-fold enhancement in photocatalytic activity as compared to CsPbBr 3 quantum dots. Density functional theory calculations reveal the rapid CO 2 adsorption/activation and the decreased free energy (0.66 eV) of *COOH formation at the interface of Ag nanoparticles and g-C 3 N 4 in contrast to the g-C 3 N 4 , leading to the excellent photocatalytic activity, while the thermodynamically favored CO desorption contributes to the high CO selectivity. This work presents an innovative strategy of constructing perovskite-based photocatalyst by modulating catalyst structure and offers profound insights for efficient CO 2 conversion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Graphene and its derivatives, due to their two-dimensional carbon nanostructures, have provided new opportunities to fortify organic dye-based photovoltaic and photocatalytic assemblies. In this article, we employed organic dyes Rhodamine B (RdB) and graphene oxide (GO) [or reduced graphene oxide (RGO)] to assemble the composite materials RdB–GO and RdB–RGO. It was found that both GO and RGO could strongly quench the fluorescence (FL) intensity of RdB. The mechanisms of FL quenching in both RdB–GO and RdB–RGO have been investigated by using femtosecond fluorescence up-conversion and transient absorption spectroscopy. When RdB was anchored on the GO (or RGO) surface, the solvent relaxation component 3.1 ps of pure RdB disappeared; instead, the ultrafast excited state electron transfer process (1–2ps) in RdB-GO and RdB-RGO was found and originated from the LUMO of RdB to the conduction band of GO (or RGO). We further reveal that the energy level change caused by GO reduction makes the energy levels of RGO closer to those of RdB, resulting in the electron transfer being more effective in RdB–RGO. Therefore, the RdB–RGO composite materials may have higher application values for dye-sensitized solar cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the assay for Brucella, the identification and differentiation of wild strains and vaccine strains present a significant challenge. Currently, there aren't any commercially available product to address this issue. In this study, we have developed a novel gated nanoprobe by utilizing Metal–Organic Frameworks (MOFs) as a scaffold and hairpin DNA as a "gating switch". Specifically, Probe 1 with hairpin structure (P1h) targets a gene that is present in both wild strains Y3 (B. melitensis biovar 3) and vaccine strains A19 (Brucella abortus strains A19). We successfully applied this probe to screen positive samples of Brucella without any cross-reactivity with other substances. Additionally, we identified another specific gene exclusively found in wild strains, which serves as Probe 2 with hairpin structure (P2h) to confirm the strain type. Simultaneous detachment of both P1h and P2h from the MOFs leads to the release of Rhodamine 6G (Rho 6G) and Fluorescein (Flu), specifically indicating the presence of wild strains. If only P1h detaches and the Flu signal is detected, it suggests the presence of vaccine strains. Importantly, this method offers high accuracy, with a detection rate of 90% and a recovery rate of 94.71% to 107.65%, while avoiding cross-reactions with MO and TB. This one-step experiment provides reliable identification and differentiation of Y3 and A19, addressing concerns related to long periodicity, interference from individual variations, and the complex design of primers in existing laboratory methods. Furthermore, our approach successfully detects target 1 (T1) and target 2 (T2) at concentrations ranging from 10−6 M to 10−9 M, with a detection limit of 6.7 × 10−10 M and 6.4 × 10−10 M, respectively. Importantly, our strategy is cost-effective (around $1) and offers higher detection efficiency compared to traditional laboratory methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigated the quasiperiodic pulsations (QPPs) of the X1.2 solar flare (SOL2023-01-06T00:57) based on multi-instrument observations, especially the Hard X-ray Imager (HXI) on board the Advanced Space-based Solar Observatory (ASO-S). The quasiperiod of ≈ 27 s was identified in hard X-rays (HXR) and microwaves using the Markov Chain Monte Carlo method, while no corresponding oscillation was found in soft X-rays. The HXI imaging demonstrates that HXR pulsations arise from the double-footpoint HXR sources. Moreover, the fluctuation of ≈ 27 s period was also present in the nonthermal electron power-law index derived from the X-ray spectra, which is the signature of periodic electron acceleration/precipitation during the impulsive phase. The electron spectral indices not only exhibited the well-known "soft–hard–soft" evolution, but also showed the negative correlation with the HXR pulsations. These results suggest that QPPs directly originate from quasiperiodic injections of accelerated electrons into flare-loop footpoints. We also discuss the possible generation mechanisms for QPPs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We consider the two dimensional surface quasi-geostrophic equations with super-critical dissipation. For large initial data in critical Sobolev and Besov spaces, we prove optimal Gevrey regularity endowed with the same decay exponent as the linear part. This settles several open problems in Biswas (J Differ Equ 257(6):1753–1772, 2014), Biswas et al. (J Funct Anal 269(10):3083–3119, 2015). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study is to develop a systematic meso‐level theoretical modeling approach for analyzing the mode‐I fracture failure behaviors of concrete. Firstly, the eXtended Universal Morphological Model (XUMM) is briefly reviewed. Secondly, a normalized analysis method for the evaluation of effects of properties and scales of meso structures on the performance of concrete is proposed based on the XUMM. Afterwards, parametric studies regarding the aggregate strength effect, the aggregate volume effect, the maximum aggregate size (MAS) effect, the tortuosity of mesoscopic crack, the roughness of fracture surface and the characteristic length are conducted. At last, a case study on the MAS effect based on experimental tests is provided to verify the applicability of the XUMM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The seasonal temperature forecasting models in greenhouse based on multiple regression (MR), BP artificial neural networks (BPANN), random forest (RF) and support vector machine (SVM) were constructed using meteorological observations inside and outside the Venlo-type glass greenhouses from 27th February 2021 to 4th March 2023 at Nanjing University of Information Science & Technology, and then to validate all the models. The results showed that the fitting accuracy of the seasonal forecasting models for daily average and minimum air temperatures in the greenhouse was significantly higher than that of the seasonal forecasting models for daily maximum air temperature; the fitting accuracy of each model for air temperature inside the greenhouse in spring, summer and autumn was higher than that for winter. For the seasonal forecasting models of daily average air temperature and minimum air temperature, the fitting accuracy of the spring, summer and autumn forecasting models constructed by the four algorithms was higher, but the simulation effect of the RF model was more stable, and the coefficient of determination (R²) of the simulated values and the actual observed values were above 0.94, and the root mean square error (RMSE) and absolute error (MAE) were within 1.5 °C. For the seasonal forecast models of daily maximum temperature, the fitting accuracy of RF model for spring, summer and autumn was higher than other models in general, and its R² value was above 0.75. The MR model had higher accuracy for winter indoor air temperature and was more suitable for predicting winter greenhouse air temperature. The study concluded that it is feasible to choose the RF model to forecast the air temperature inside the glass greenhouse in spring, summer and autumn and the MR model to forecast the air temperature inside the glass greenhouse in winter, and this study can provide an important reference for the seasonal forecast of air temperature in Venlo-type glass greenhouse. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: We aimed to study the effects of aspirin intake for diabetic retinopathy (DR) and diabetic macular edema (DME) in a cohort from northeastern China. Methods: Participants in the Fushun Diabetic Retinopathy Cohort Study were enrolled between July 2012 and May 2013. Fundus photographs of six fields were graded according to the modified Airlie House Classification system. The prevalence, incidence, progression, and regression of DR, as well as the prevalence/incidence of DME, were evaluated at baseline and during follow-up examinations after at least 1 year. Results: In total, 1370 patients were enrolled in the study, and 270 (19.7%) were taking aspirin. The prevalence of any DR in participants with and without aspirin intake was 47.4% and 44.9%, respectively (P = 0.46). The incidence of any DR in patients with and without aspirin intake was 9.2% and 8.3%, respectively (P = 0.74). In univariate regression, there was no association between aspirin intake and the prevalence of any DR and DME (odds ratios (OR), 95% confidence intervals (CI): 0.93, 0.68–1.27 and 1.22, 0.79–1.88, respectively). Aspirin intake was not significantly associated with the prevalence and incidence of DME (OR, 95% CI: 1.22, 0.79–1.88 and 1.79, 0.62–5.17, respectively). Furthermore, aspirin intake was not significantly associated with DR progression or regression (OR, 95% CI: 1.04, 0.66–1.66 and 0.75, 0.52–1.09, respectively). Conclusion: Aspirin intake was not associated with the prevalence and incidence of any DR or DME in a northeastern Chinese population. Neither progression nor regression of DR revealed a significant association with aspirin intake. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Full myco‐heterotrophic orchid Gastrodia elata Bl. is widely distributed in Northeast Asia, and previous research has not fully investigated the symbiotic fungal community of its early immature tubers. This study utilized Illumina sequencing to compare symbiotic fungal communities in natural G. elata immature tubers and their habitats. LEfSe (Linear Discriminant Analysis Effect Size) was used to screen for Biomarkers that could explain variations among different fungal communities, and correlation analyses were performed among Biomarkers and other common orchid mycorrhizal fungi. Our results illustrate that the symbiotic fungal communities of immature G. elata tubers cannot be simply interpreted as subsets of the environmental fungal communities because some key members cannot be traced back to the environment. The early growth of G. elata was related to a small group of fungi, such as Sebacina, Thelephora, and Inocybe, which were also common mycorrhizal fungi from other orchids. In addition, Mycena, Auricularia, and Cryptococcus were unique fungal partners of G. elata, and many new species have yet to be discovered. Possible symbiotic Mycena should be M. plumipes and its sibling species in this case. Our results provide insight into the symbiotic partner switch and trophic pattern change during the development and maturation of G. elata. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

People often form first impressions of others based on face and/or voice cues. This study aimed to compare the first impressions formed under these two cues. First, we compared free descriptions based on face and voice cues and found differences in the content and frequency of the personality words. We then compiled three wordlists used for face‐based and voice‐based first impression evaluations separately or simultaneously. Second, using these wordlists, we compared face‐based and voice‐based first impression ratings and found that both had significant intra‐rater and inter‐rater reliability. However, using the mean of the actors' self‐rating and their acquaintance rating as the validity criterion, only the ratings of 'ingenuous' and 'mature' traits in the face‐based first impression evaluation were significantly correlated with the validity criterion. Factor analysis revealed that face‐based first impression had the dimensions of capability and approachability, while voice‐based first impression had capability, approachability and reliability. The findings indicate that stable first impressions can be formed by either face or voice cues. However, the specific composition of impressions will vary between the cues. These results also provide a foundation for studying first impressions formed by an integrated perception of voice and face cues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As excellent functional materials, the composite materials based on graphene and its derivatives (GNDs) have lots of important application values in the emerging fields such as solar energy conversion, and the exploration of electron (or energy) transfer properties of those composites is the key for revealing their further applications. In this review, femtosecond transient absorption spectroscopy (TAS) has been introduced as an essential technique to understand the carrier behaviors in GNDs composites, as well as the advancements of TAS. The specific examples of electron transport in various composite materials characterized by TAS are summarized and discussed, which consist of GNDs with semiconductor quantum dots (QDs), organic dyes, organic polymers, perovskites and other materials, respectively. This review provides a deep insight into the electron transfer (ET) kinetics of various GNDs composites from the perspective of TAS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the advancement of content-based medical image retrieval (CBMIR) technology which is used as a convenient assistant for medical diagnosis. However, the potential risk of privacy disclosure in CBMIR remains a concern due to the involvement of patients' sensitive information in medical images. To address this issue, we have proposed an efficient scheme to achieve privacy-preserving medical image retrieval, named PMIR. The primary objective of PMIR is to enhance the accuracy of medical image retrieval while ensuring privacy protection. In PMIR, medical institutions with large repositories of medical images can securely upload to the cloud server with their image data and encryption indexes. Subsequently, users who successfully registered from medical institutions are able to enjoy convenient image retrieval services without revealing their sensitive information and query attributes to the cloud server. The proposed approach emphasizes a privacy-preserving policy mechanism, which empowers users with the right to choose rather than relying solely on service providers. Through rigorous security analysis, it is demonstrated that PMIR can effectively withstand various known security threats. Additionally, experimental results highlight the substantial reduction in communication overhead achieved by PMIR, ultimately providing a seamless and secure search experience for users. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context. The immune system of piglets is not fully developed at weaning. The immature adaptive immune system along with the change in the feed types and the living conditions make piglets susceptible to pathogenic infections, and result in diarrhoea and decreased growth. However, the underlying mechanisms require further research. Aims. This study was conducted to investigate the effects of weaning on the growth performance and intestinal immune function of piglets. Methods. In total, 40 piglets with similar bodyweights were selected in pairs at 21 days old and divided into the suckling group (SG, breastfed by their mothers) and weaning group (WG, weaned at 21 days old). Eight piglets from each group were randomly selected and sacrificed at 24 days (SG3 and WG3) and 28 days of age (SG7 and WG7). The growth performance, T lymphocyte subpopulations, the concentration of cytokines and immunoglobulins, and the expression of Notch2 signalling proteins were determined. Key results. The weaning caused a decrease in bodyweight (P < 0.01) and the ratio of CD3+CD4+/CD3+CD8+ T cells in the thymus (P < 0.05). Compared with SG3, the concentration of secretory immunoglobulin A (sIgA) in the jejunum was decreased, and that of interleukin 2 (IL-2) in serum and ileum, IL-1β and IL-2 in jejunum were upregulated (P < 0.01), while IL-10 in the small intestine was downregulated (P < 0.05) in WG3. Weaning downregulated gene expression of IL-4 and upregulated gene expression of IL-1β, IL-12, and interferon γ (IFN-γ) in small intestine (P < 0.05). Weaning downregulated protein expression of Notch2 and Hes1 but upregulated Jagged1 expression in small intestine of piglets (P < 0.05). Conclusions. Weaning caused an imbalance in T lymphocyte distribution, thus impairing the intestinal immune function of piglets, which might be associated with the Notch2 signalling. Furthermore, weaning caused adverse effects on piglets especially on the first 3 days, which were partly recovered after 3 days, but still existed at 7 days after weaning. Implications. The results of this study may guide the pig-raising industry, especially for the management of piglets shortly after weaning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Costaceae, commonly known as the spiral ginger family, consists of approximately 120 species distributed in the tropical regions of South America, Africa, and Southeast Asia, of which some species have important ornamental, medicinal and ecological values. Previous studies on the phylogenetic and taxonomic of Costaceae by using nuclear internal transcribed spacer (ITS) and chloroplast genome fragments data had low resolutions. Additionally, the structures, variations and molecular evolution of complete chloroplast genomes in Costaceae still remain unclear. Herein, a total of 13 complete chloroplast genomes of Costaceae including 8 newly sequenced and 5 from the NCBI GenBank database, representing all three distribution regions of this family, were comprehensively analyzed for comparative genomics and phylogenetic relationships. Result: The 13 complete chloroplast genomes of Costaceae possessed typical quadripartite structures with lengths from 166,360 to 168,966 bp, comprising a large single copy (LSC, 90,802 − 92,189 bp), a small single copy (SSC, 18,363 − 20,124 bp) and a pair of inverted repeats (IRs, 27,982 − 29,203 bp). These genomes coded 111 − 113 different genes, including 79 protein-coding genes, 4 rRNA genes and 28 − 30 tRNAs genes. The gene orders, gene contents, amino acid frequencies and codon usage within Costaceae were highly conservative, but several variations in intron loss, long repeats, simple sequence repeats (SSRs) and gene expansion on the IR/SC boundaries were also found among these 13 genomes. Comparative genomics within Costaceae identified five highly divergent regions including ndhF, ycf1-D2, ccsA-ndhD, rps15-ycf1-D2 and rpl16-exon2-rpl16-exon1. Five combined DNA regions (ycf1-D2 + ndhF, ccsA-ndhD + rps15-ycf1-D2, rps15-ycf1-D2 + rpl16-exon2-rpl16-exon1, ccsA-ndhD + rpl16-exon2-rpl16-exon1, and ccsA-ndhD + rps15-ycf1-D2 + rpl16-exon2-rpl16-exon1) could be used as potential markers for future phylogenetic analyses and species identification in Costaceae. Positive selection was found in eight protein-coding genes, including cemA, clpP, ndhA, ndhF, petB, psbD, rps12 and ycf1. Maximum likelihood and Bayesian phylogenetic trees using chloroplast genome sequences consistently revealed identical tree topologies with high supports between species of Costaceae. Three clades were divided within Costaceae, including the Asian clade, Costus clade and South American clade. Tapeinochilos was a sister of Hellenia, and Parahellenia was a sister to the cluster of Tapeinochilos + Hellenia with strong support in the Asian clade. The results of molecular dating showed that the crown age of Costaceae was about 30.5 Mya (95% HPD: 14.9 − 49.3 Mya), and then started to diverge into the Costus clade and Asian clade around 23.8 Mya (95% HPD: 10.1 − 41.5 Mya). The Asian clade diverged into Hellenia and Parahellenia at approximately 10.7 Mya (95% HPD: 3.5 − 25.1 Mya). Conclusion: The complete chloroplast genomes can resolve the phylogenetic relationships of Costaceae and provide new insights into genome structures, variations and evolution. The identified DNA divergent regions would be useful for species identification and phylogenetic inference in Costaceae. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ni‐M‐O catalysts have demonstrated superior performance in the oxidative dehydrogenation of ethane (ODHE), but precise control over the content of active oxygen species is necessary to achieve optimal C2H4 selectivity. In this work, highly efficient Ni‐Al‐O catalysts were prepared by a plasma‐assisted strategy, and their catalytic properties were evaluated for ODHE reaction. Characterization results revealed that the working atmospheres (O2, H2 and Ar) can not only change the crystallite size of NiO, but also modulate the reduction properties of Ni‐Al‐O catalysts and the distribution of active oxygen species. Consequently, Ar and O2 plasma pretreatment increased the ODHE performance by increasing active surface oxygen, while H2 plasma‐treated catalyst showed a decrease in the catalytic performance compared to the original Ni‐Al‐O catalyst. Among them, O2‐Ni‐Al‐O exhibited 50.8 % ethane conversion and 70.3 % ethylene selectivity at 500 °C. It was accepted that the change in the ratio of defective oxygen to lattice oxygen (OV/OL) was the internal reason to illustrate its excellent performance. For series Ni‐Al‐O catalysts, C2H6 conversion increased linearly while C2H4 selectivity decreased with an increase in OV/OL value. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Heart disease is the leading cause of death worldwide. There is a need to develop a drug delivery system that can specifically target injured hearts and deliver therapeutic agents. Nanoparticles are a promising option for targeted drug delivery in both preclinical and clinical studies. However, the current nanoparticle-based drug delivery system does not have enough specificity in targeting the cardiac tissue. In this study, we have designed cardiac targeting peptides that focus on the molecules present in the cardiomyocyte membrane. Data from cell and animal studies have shown that when nanoparticles are conjugated with these peptides, their binding affinity to cardiomyocytes significantly improves. Therefore, we are developing a targeting system that can be utilized to deliver therapeutic compounds specifically to cardiomyocytes for the treatment of heart diseases. Background: Nanoparticles (NPs) have been extensively utilized as a drug delivery system to control the release of therapeutic agents to treat cardiac injuries. However, despite the advantages of utilizing NP-based drug delivery for treating heart diseases, the current delivery system lacks specificity in targeting the cardiac tissue, thus limiting its application. Methods: We created three linear peptides, each consisting of 16–24 amino acids. These peptides were conjugated on the surface of NPs, resulting in the formation of cardiac targeting peptide (CTP)-NPs (designated as CTP-NP1, CTP-NP2, and CTP-NP3). To assess their effectiveness, we compared the binding efficiency of these three CTP-NPs to human and mouse cardiomyocytes. Additionally, we determined their distribution 24 h after injecting the CTP-NPs intravenously into adult C57BL/6J mice. Results: When compared to control NPs without CTP (Con-NPs), all three CTP-NPs exhibited significantly increased binding affinity to both human and mouse cardiomyocytes in vitro and enhanced retention in mouse hearts in vivo. A thorough assessment of the heart sections demonstrated that the binding specificity of CTP-NP3 to cardiomyocytes in vivo was significantly greater than that of Con-NPs. None of the three CTP-NPs were proven to cause cardiomyocyte apoptosis. Conclusions: Biocompatible and safe CTP-NP3 can target the heart via binding to cardiomyocytes. This approach of targeting specific molecules-coated NPs may help in delivering therapeutic compounds to cardiomyocytes for the treatment of heart diseases with high efficacy and low toxicity to other tissues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we propose a protocol for generating N-qubit Greenberger–Horne–Zeilinger (GHZ) states in a superconducting system. The physical model contains N superconducting flux qubits and a cavity, where the N superconducting flux qubits are coupled to the cavity simultaneously. The preparation of GHZ states can be realized in one step by applying a pair of classical fields to each qubit. The protocol is promising for generating N-qubit GHZ states because the operation time is independent of the number of the qubits in the strong drive regime. Furthermore, we consider the effects of random noise and decoherence, and numerical simulations show that the protocol is insensitive to these disturbing factors. Therefore, the protocol may be useful in the generation of GHZ states. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractA brucite suspension can absorb sulfur dioxide (SO2). It thereby plays a significant role flue gas desulfurization. However, the dispersion of a natural brucite suspension is low which seriously affects its efficiency for SO2 absorption. The dispersion stability and particle size of the brucite suspension are therefore, particularly important to investigate. The effects of types and dosages of inorganic dispersants on the particle size and dispersion stability of the brucite suspension have been investigated in the present study by performing sedimentation experiments and zeta potential tests. The results showed that the addition of 0.5 wt.% sodium hexametaphosphate (SHMP) had a positive effect on the dispersion stability of brucite in an aqueous medium. The effect of SHMP on the surface properties of the brucite particles was also studied by performing characterizations like scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and infrared spectroscopy (IR), and by using an extended DLVO theory (named after Boris Derjaguin and Lev Landau, Evert Verwey and Theodoor Overbeek). The results showed that SHMP was chemisorbed on the brucite particle surface. It also formed complexes with magnesium ions, and changed the zeta potential of brucite. In addition, calculations based on the extended DLVO theory showed that the sum of the steric hindrance-induced interaction energy, Van-der-Waals energy, and electrostatic energy changed from an unfavorable value to a favorable value with an increase in the particle distance. These results showed that the addition of SHMP could improve the desulphurization effect of the brucite suspension. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Herein, a photocatalytic system for defluorinative [4+2] annulation of gem‐difluoroalkenes with unactivated alkenes is realized. This protocol was compatible with a broad scope of unactivated alkenes, affording the diverse monofluorocyclohexene products in 30–95% yields. Furthermore, the value of this method was demonstrated by the gram‐scale synthesis, late‐stage functionalization and synthesis of various valuable and complex monofluorocyclohexene derivatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agricultural mechanization is crucial in enhancing production efficiency, alleviating labor demands, reducing costs, improving agricultural product quality, and promoting sustainable development. However, wear and tear are inevitable when using agricultural machinery. The failure of critical wear-resistant parts is responsible for over 50% of rural machinery breakdowns. For instance, a domestic combine harvester typically only operates trouble-free for 20 to 30 h, and the service life of a rotary plow knife is approximately 80 h. Investigating the wear performance of key farm machinery components reinforces machinery design and maintenance strategies, extends machinery lifespans, enhances agricultural production efficiency, and advances agrarian sustainability. This paper provides a comprehensive overview of the latest research on the wear resistance of crucial agricultural machinery components. It delves into the factors influencing the wear resistance of these components and explores current effective measures to address wear-related issues. Additionally, it also summarizes the challenges and opportunities in researching the wear performance of key components in agricultural machinery and future development directions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Palladium nanoparticles (Pd NPs) show significant promise as agents for the photothermal treatment of tumors due to their high photothermal conversion efficiency and thermal stability. theoretical calculations were conducted to investigate the electric field and solid heat conduction of Pd NPs with various sizes and particle distances, aiming to achieve the maximum photothermal conversion efficiency during laser irradiation. Subsequently, Pd NPs with optimal size and structure were synthesized. In vitro and in vivo experiments were conducted to evaluate photothermal conversion. The theoretical results indicated that a peak temperature of 90.12 °C is achieved when the side length is 30 nm with a distance of 2 nm. In vitro experiments demonstrated that the photothermal conversion efficiency of Pd NPs can reach up to 61.9%. in vivo experiments revealed that injecting Pd NPs into blood vessels can effectively reduce the number of laser pulses by 22.22%, thereby inducing obvious vasoconstriction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The sustainable development of novel photo/electrocatalytic CO2/N2 fixation for chemical synthesis is predicated on reliable, accurate, and rapid detection methods. The directness, specificity, and simultaneity in detecting multiple molecules of the 1H nuclear magnetic resonance (1H‐NMR) technique have aroused increasing interest in photo/electrocatalysis. Thus far, two data processing means have been developed for the precise 1H‐NMR data processing: peak integral and peak height methods. However, few detailed studies offer a clear steer for choosing data processing methods for the concerned products in photo/electrocatalysis, especially the guidelines under the conditions of baseline distortions induced by water suppression. Herein, the feasible practices are restudied to quantify classical products in photo/electrocatalytic CO2/N2 fixation. On the basis of experimental results, 1H‐NMR data processing methods (peak integral and peak height methods) are found to convey different applicability for the different low‐concentration products, while introducing water suppression in the 1H‐NMR tests. The essential reason can be attributed to the baseline distortions caused by the water suppression, which arouses differentiated deviation of peaks with different peak widths. With this in mind, an accessible quantification criterion is provided to avoid superfluous input of time or cost in precise 1H‐NMR detection of low‐concentration products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Palladium nanoparticles (Pd NPs) show significant promise as agents for the photothermal treatment of tumors due to their high photothermal conversion efficiency and thermal stability. theoretical calculations were conducted to investigate the electric field and solid heat conduction of Pd NPs with various sizes and particle distances, aiming to achieve the maximum photothermal conversion efficiency during laser irradiation. Subsequently, Pd NPs with optimal size and structure were synthesized. In vitro and in vivo experiments were conducted to evaluate photothermal conversion. The theoretical results indicated that a peak temperature of 90.12 °C is achieved when the side length is 30 nm with a distance of 2 nm. In vitro experiments demonstrated that the photothermal conversion efficiency of Pd NPs can reach up to 61.9%. in vivo experiments revealed that injecting Pd NPs into blood vessels can effectively reduce the number of laser pulses by 22.22%, thereby inducing obvious vasoconstriction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The influence of the powered effect on the aerodynamic performance of the blended-wing-body (BWB) takeoff configuration is analysed in this study by solving the three-dimensional Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes equation on a multiblock structured grid. The powered effect on the aerodynamic performance of the BWB300 configuration was investigated with through-flow nacelle (TFN) and powered nacelle (PN) using this method. The results showed that although the influence of the powered effect caused a slight change in the aerodynamic performance of the BWB takeoff configuration, it did not change the development trend of the aerodynamic performance of the BWB takeoff configuration. Therefore, the TFN model can be used to obtain the general development trend of the aerodynamic performance of the BWB takeoff configuration in the early stages of the BWB design. However, when more accurate aerodynamic values are required, the powered effect should be considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To investigate coronary artery disease (CAD) and its correlation with the ambulatory arterial stiffness index (AASI) in patients with H-type hypertension (essential hypertension combined with hyperhomocysteinemia) and coronary heart disease (CHD). Methods: Patients with essential hypertension and CHD who were undergoing coronary angiography were enrolled. The general clinical data, biochemical indicators, ambulatory blood pressure monitoring results and coronary angiography results of the selected patients were collected, and the AASI and Gensini scores were calculated. According to homocysteine (Hcy) levels, the patients were divided into two groups: a study group and a control group. The differences in general clinical data, biochemical indexes, AASI scores and degree of coronary artery lesions between the two groups were compared. The correlation between the AASI and the Gensini score and the relationship between the AASI and the Gensini score of CAD and various factors were analyzed. Results: Compared with the control group, the Hcy level in the study group was significantly increased (8.16 ± 2.33 vs 19.20 ± 2.36, P = .001). The 24-h diastolic blood pressure (DBP) in the study group was significantly lower than that in the control group (76.38 ± 9.33 vs 79.91 ± 9.25, P = .002), and the AASI was significantly higher than in the control group (0.62 ± 0.81 vs 0.420 ± 0.70, P = .001). The number of patients having coronary stenoses with a Gensini score of ≤ 38 was significantly lower in the study group than in the control group (21.3% vs 49.4%, P < .001). The number of patients with a Gensini score of ≥ 51 in the study group was significantly higher than in the control group (22.0% vs 18.8%, P < .001). There was a significant positive correlation between the AASI and the Gensini score in the study group (R = 0.732, P < .001). Hypertension duration (β = 0.168), diabetes history (β = 0.236), 24-h SBP (β = 0.122), 24-h DBP (β = -0.131), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (β = 0.134) and Hcy (β = 0.233) were the influencing factors for AASI (P < .05). Both Hcy * AASI (β = 0.356) and Hcy × 24-h HR (β = 0.331) had a synergistic effect on the Gensini score (P = .017), with Hcy * AASI having a more significant effect on the Gensini score (P < .001). Conclusion: The AASI was significantly increased in patients with H-type hypertension and CHD, which was associated with the severity of CAD. Therefore, Hcy levels and the AASI have a synergistic effect when evaluating the severity of CAD in patients with hypertensive CHD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Benign metastasizing leiomyoma (BML) is a rare disease that affects women with a history of uterine leiomyoma. The aim of this study is to investigate the clinical characteristics and outcome patterns. We collected 385 cases from previous reports indexed in PubMed and Google Scholar and made a thorough review. All relevant clinical parameters were carefully reviewed, including age at diagnosis, clinical presentations, course of disease, medical history, imaging, molecular tests, treatment, and outcomes. Univariate survival analysis was performed to investigate the effects of treatment strategies on outcomes. The mean age at diagnosis was 46.2 years. The most common site for the metastasis was lung, and followed by abdomen/pelvis/retroperitoneum, bone, lymph nodes, and heart. The medical histories and molecular alterations were non-specific, and the pathogenesis was still unclear. Due to its unresectable nature, hormone deprivation treatment, including oophorectomy and hormone drugs, is the most effective strategy to reduce or delay tumor progression. The present study may provide a useful consultation for diagnosing and managing BMLs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] The non-volatile magnetoresistive random access memory (MRAM) is believed to facilitate emerging applications, such as in-memory computing, neuromorphic computing and stochastic computing. Two-dimensional (2D) materials and their van der Waals heterostructures promote the development of MRAM technology, due to their atomically smooth interfaces and tunable physical properties. Here we report the all-2D magnetoresistive memories featuring all-electrical data reading and writing at room temperature based on WTe 2 /Fe 3 GaTe 2 /BN/Fe 3 GaTe 2 heterostructures. The data reading process relies on the tunnel magnetoresistance of Fe 3 GaTe 2 /BN/Fe 3 GaTe 2. The data writing is achieved through current induced polarization of orbital magnetic moments in WTe 2 , which exert torques on Fe 3 GaTe 2 , known as the orbit-transfer torque (OTT) effect. In contrast to the conventional reliance on spin moments in spin-transfer torque and spin–orbit torque, the OTT effect leverages the natural out-of-plane orbital moments, facilitating field-free perpendicular magnetization switching through interface currents. Our results indicate that the emerging OTT-MRAM is promising for low-power, high-performance memory applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: As an important task in bioinformatics, clustering analysis plays a critical role in understanding the functional mechanisms of many complex biological systems, which can be modeled as biological networks. The purpose of clustering analysis in biological networks is to identify functional modules of interest, but there is a lack of online clustering tools that visualize biological networks and provide in-depth biological analysis for discovered clusters. Results: Here we present BioCAIV, a novel webserver dedicated to maximize its accessibility and applicability on the clustering analysis of biological networks. This, together with its user-friendly interface, assists biological researchers to perform an accurate clustering analysis for biological networks and identify functionally significant modules for further assessment. Conclusions: BioCAIV is an efficient clustering analysis webserver designed for a variety of biological networks. BioCAIV is freely available without registration requirements at http://bioinformatics.tianshanzw.cn:8888/BioCAIV/. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anthocyanins are widespread water-soluble pigments in the plant kingdom. Anthocyanin accumulation is activated by the MYB-bHLH-WD40 (MBW) protein complex. In Arabidopsis, the R2R3-MYB transcription factor PAP1 activates anthocyanin biosynthesis. While prior research primarily focused on seedlings, seeds received limited attention. This study explores PAP1's genome-wide target genes in anthocyanin biosynthesis in seeds. Our findings confirm that PAP1 is a positive regulator of anthocyanin biosynthesis in Arabidopsis seeds. PAP1 significantly increased anthocyanin content in developing and mature seeds in Arabidopsis. Transcriptome analysis at 12 days after pollination reveals the upregulation of numerous genes involved in anthocyanin accumulation in 35S:PAP1 developing seeds. Chromatin immunoprecipitation and dual luciferase reporter assays demonstrate PAP1's direct promotion of ten key genes and indirect upregulation of TT8, TTG1, and eight key genes during seed maturation, thus enhancing seed anthocyanin accumulation. These findings enhance our understanding of PAP1's novel role in regulating anthocyanin accumulation in Arabidopsis seeds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]