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Increased reactive oxygen species associated with loss of mitochondrial function affect synaptic activity, which is an important mechanism underlying cognitive decline. This study assesses the role of mitochondrial proteins in neuron-derived exosomes (NDEs) on cognitive impairment in patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) without dementia. Analyses were conducted in 268 study participants with complete polysomnography data, cognitive tests, and important clinical data available. NDEs were isolated immunochemically for enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay quantification of mitochondrial proteins, i.e., humanin and mitochondrial open reading frame of the 12S rRNA-c (MOTS-c), and synaptic protein, i.e., neurogranin (NRGN). A mediation analysis of the relationship between sleep parameters and cognition was performed using humanin, MOTS-c, and NRGN values as a mediating factor. Twenty-two patients with moderate to severe OSA who received CPAP therapy were followed up, and humanin, MOTS-c and NRGN levels were reassessed after 1 year of treatment. All participants were divided into the OSA + MCI group (n = 91), OSA-MCI group (n = 89), MCI group (MCI without OSA) (n = 38) and control group (normal cognitive state without OSA) (n = 50). The mean CD63-normalized NDE levels of humanin, MOTS-c, and NRGN in the OSA + MCI group were higher than those in the OSA-MCI and control groups. The NDE levels of humanin, MOTS-c, and NRGN in the MCI group were lower than those in controls. The odds of cognitive impairment in patients with OSA were higher with higher NDE levels of humanin, MOTS-c, and NRGN (odds ratio (OR): 2.100, 95 % confidence interval (CI): 1.646–2.679, P < 0.001; OR: 5.453, 95 % CI: 3.112–9.556, P < 0.001; OR: 3.115, 95 % CI: 2.163–4.484, P < 0.001). The impaired cognitive performance was associated with higher NDE levels of humanin (β: 0.505, SE: 0.048, P < 0.001), MOTS-c (β: 0.580, SE: 0.001, P < 0.001), and NRGN (β: 0.585, SE: 0.553, P < 0.001). The relationship between sleep parameters (mean SaO 2 and T90) and MoCA scores was mediated by the NDE levels of humanin, MOTS-c, and NRGN with the proportion of mediation varying from 35.33 % to 149.07 %. Receiver operating characteristic curve revealed an area under the curve of 0.905 for humanin, 0.873 for MOTS-c, and 0.934 for NRGN to predict MCI in OSA patients without dementia. Increased humanin, MOTS-c, and NRGN levels significantly decreased after CPAP treatment. Mitochondrial dysfunction is implicated in cognitive impairment in OSA patients without dementia, and mainly mediates the association between intermittent hypoxia and cognitive impairment in adults with OSA without dementia. Mitochondrial dysfunction can be partially reversible by CPAP treatment. Mitochondrial proteins can be used as markers of cognitive impairment in patients with OSA. • Mitochondrial dysfunction is associated with cognitive impairment in OSA patients. • Mitochondrial dysfunction can be partially reversible by CPAP treatment. • Neuroexosomal mitochondrial proteins can be used as biomarkers of cognitive impairment in OSA patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Deep learning has great potential on decoding EEG in brain-computer interface. While common deep learning algorithms cannot directly train models with data from multiple individuals because of the inter-individual differences in EEG. Collecting enough data for each subject to satisfy the training of deep learning would result in an increase in training cost. This study proposes a novel transfer learning, EEGNet-based multi-source domain filter for transfer learning (EEGNet-MDFTL), to reduce the amount of training data and improve the performance of BCI. The EEGNet-MDFTL uses bagging ensemble learning to learn domain-invariant features from the multi-source domain and utilizes model loss value to filter the multi-source domain. Compared with baseline methods, the accuracy of the EEGNet-MDFTL reaches 91.96%, higher than two state-of-the-art methods, which demonstrates source domain filter can select similar source domains to improve the accuracy of the model, and remains a high level even when the data amount is reduced to 1/8, proving that ensemble learning learns enough domain invariant features from the multi-source domain to make the model insensitive to data amount. The proposed EEGNet-MDFTL is effective in improving the decoding performance with a small amount of data, which is helpful to save the BCI training cost. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Arguably, water is an ideal hydrogen source for reduction reactions, however with significant difficulties in practice. In this work, water was utilized as a hydrogen source for the electrochemical reduction of benzoic acid esters in an undivided cell by electrolysis with either direct current or rapid alternating polarity current, depending on the electronic properties of the ester. Notably, reactions using D2O afforded valuable d2-benzyl alcohols, with D incorporation rates as high as 97%. Mechanistic studies revealed that the reaction pathway depended on the substrate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Conducting electrochemical organic synthesis in/on whole water media is undoubtedly a highly green approach, which avoids the usage of organic solvents, and sometimes organic supporting electrolytes. In this review, the electrochemical organic syntheses in/on whole water environment are reviewed, especially including the reactions conducted both in organic solvent and water for comparisons. This review discussed anodic and cathodic reaction, respectively, including the C−H oxidation, hydroxylation, dehydrogenative cross coupling, functionalization of alkenes, cathodic oxidation, hydrogenation, reductive cross coupling, and so on. As the reduction of CO2, conversion biomass, and waste water disposal are frequently performed in water, and have already been reviewed recently. These topics are not included in this review. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Travel live streaming's growing popularity among viewers provides unprecedented opportunities for live streamers. This study explores the persuasive linguistic styles of travel live streamers, underpinned by Hovland's persuasion theory and Aristotle's rhetoric persuasion modes. Through 23 in-depth interviewees, four dimensions of live streamer linguistic persuasion styles are identified, which include appeals to emotion, logic, credibility, and a new dimension, appeal to social. This new dimension extends Hovland's persuasion theory and offers new practical insights into how the persuasive linguistic styles of live streamers may be cultivated to effectively influence viewers in travel live streaming. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Cognitive impairment is common in patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). Previous studies indicated that intermittent hypoxia, sleep fragmentation, and depressive symptoms were associated with cognitive impairment in OSA patients. Objective: The study aimed to investigate whether sleep characteristics and depressive symptoms affected cognitive abilities mediated by Alzheimer's disease (AD) biomarkers and complement proteins in OSA patients without dementia. Methods: A total of 317 subjects without dementia who had undergone polysomnography, cognitive and neuropsychological evaluations, were recruited. Neuronal-derived exosomes (NDEs) levels for amyloid-β (Aβ), total tau (T-tau), and tau phosphorylated 62 at threonine 181 (P-T181-tau) and astrocyte-derived exosomes (ADEs) levels for complement proteins were measured. Mediation analysis were performed to explore the mediation effects of AD biomarkers (Aβ42, T-tau, P-T181-tau) and complement proteins (C3b and C5b-9) on cognition. Results: The findings revealed that the association between sleep fragmentation and cognition was mediated by Aβ42 (the percentage varied from 18.25% to 30.6%), P-T181-tau (the percentage varied from 24.36% to 32.3%), and C5b-9 (the percentage varied from 30.88% to 60.7%). The influence of depressive symptoms on cognition was only mediated via C3b (the percentage varied from 24.1% to 36.6%). Conclusions: In OSA patients without dementia, Aβ42 and P-T181-tau levels in NDEs, and C5b-9 levels in ADEs mediated the impact of sleep fragmentation on cognitive impairment, and C3b levels in ADEs mediated the impact of depressive symptoms on cognitive impairment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

People in different social statuses have different perceptions due to differences in cognition. Combined with the characteristics of public behaviour and cognition, this study examined the impact of the widespread cognitive biases in social status on performance perception. This study used the ordinary least squares model to verify that the cognitive bias in social status has a significant positive impact on the perception of social governance performance. At the same time, a moderated mediation model was constructed to verify that social trust plays a partial mediating role in the influence mechanism of cognitive bias in social status on the perception of social governance performance. The use of the Internet significantly inhibited the influence of cognitive bias in social status on the perception of social governance performance. Although it also weakened the influence of cognitive bias in social status on social trust, the moderating effect on the mediating effect is not obvious. This study verifies and analyses the internal relationship and mechanism of social status cognition deviation and perception of social governance performance from multidisciplinary dimensions, which enriches the social cognition theory of social status, and expands the research on the perception of social governance performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Increasing evidence has supported a link between obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and cognition, and blood-brain barrier (BBB) dysfunction which can be reflected by paroxysmal slow wave events (PSWEs) may be a potential mechanism. The purpose of our study was to investigate the correlation between the PSWEs and cognitive impairment in patients with OSA, with a focus on the possible mechanism. Methods: In total, 339 subjects with subjective snoring complaints from the Sleep Medicine Center underwent magnetic resonance imaging and whole-night polysomnography. OSA was defined as apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) ≥ 5 events/h. MCI was defined as the MoCA < 26 and met the criteria: (1) subjective cognitive impairment; (2) objective impairment in one or more cognitive domains; (3) slightly impaired complex instrumental daily abilities, but independent daily living abilities; and (4) no dementia. The PSWEs calculated by self-developed Python scripts were defined for EEG recordings as a median power frequency of < 6 Hz for more than five consecutive seconds. Serum cyclophilin A (CyPA) and matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) levels and amyloid-β 42 levels in neuron-derived exosomes were determined. The participants who received continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) were followed up and their PSWEs were recalculated after 1 year of treatment. Results: A total of 339 participants were divided into the OSA+MCI group (n = 157), OSA-MCI group (n = 118), and controls (normal cognitive state without OSA) (n = 64). The total PSWEs and the occurrence per minute of PSWEs at stage REM in the OSA+MCI group were higher than those in the OSA-MCI and control groups. The duration ratio of PSWEs at stage REM in the OSA+MCI group significantly increased. The total PSWEs and PSWEs at the F4-M1, O1-M2, and O2-M1 channels in stage REM were independently associated with cognitive impairment in OSA patients. There were positive correlations between the PSWEs and serum CyPA and MMP-9 levels in patients with OSA. The mediation analysis showed that the relationship between mean SaO2 and percentage of sleep time spent with oxygen saturation <90% with MoCA scores was mediated by the total PSWEs (proportion of mediation 77.89% and 82.89%). The PSWEs were negatively correlated with global cognitive performance and cognitive subdomains. After 1 year of CPAP treatment, the total PSWEs, PSWEs in stage REM, and serum CyPA and MMP-9 levels decreased significantly, and MoCA scores were improved compared with baseline. Conclusions: The PSWEs were implicated in cognitive impairment in patients with OSA, and the mechanisms of cognitive impairment due to hypoxia in OSA patients could be BBB dysfunction. The PSWEs can be used as a marker of cognitive impairment in patients with OSA. Trial registration: This trial is registered on the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry, number ChiCTR1900021544. The trial was registered on February 27, 2019. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ultraviolet–visible imaging spectropolarimeter (UVISP), developed by the Anhui Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics (AIOFM), Chinese Academy of Science (CAS), is a dual-beam snapshot instrument for measuring the spectral, radiometric, and linear polarization information of absorbing aerosol in a wavelength range from 340 to 520 nm. In this paper, we propose a complete set of calibration methods for UVISP to ensure the accuracy of the measured radiation polarization data, thus guaranteeing the reliability of inversion results. In geometric calibration, we complete the assignment of the field of view (FOV) angle to each pixel of the detector using a high precision turntable and parallel light source. In addition, the geometric calibration accuracy of the S beam and P beam is also analyzed. The results show that the residuals of all row pixels are less than 0.12°. Based on geometric calibration, a spectral calibration is conducted at each spectrum of the S beam and P beam for the given FOV, and the relation between the wavelength and pixel is obtained by a linear fitting procedure. For radiometric calibration, the uniformity of spectral responsivity is corrected, and the function between spectral radiance and output digital data is established. To improve the accuracy of the polarimetric measurement, a polarimetric calibration is proposed, and validated experimental results show that the root mean square (RMS) errors for the demodulated value are all within 0.011 for the input linear polarized light with different angles of linear polarization (AoLPs). Finally, field measurements are conducted, and the absolute deviations are all within 0.01 when the UVISP and CE-318 sun–sky polarimetric radiometer (CE318N) simultaneously measure the degree of linear polarization (DoLP) of the sky at different zenith angles. These experimental results demonstrate the efficiency and accuracy of the proposed calibration methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Treatment with CBD attenuated microglial activation in vitro and in vivo. • CBD enhanced the level of Mfn2 and improved mitochondrial function in microglia. • Mfn2 knockdown abolished the role of CBD in LPS-triggered in vitro and in vivo models. • Mfn2 knockdown abolished the role of CBD in the EAE animal model. Currently, there is increasing attention on the regulatory effects of cannabidiol (CBD) on the inflammatory response and the immune system. However, the mechanisms have not yet been completely revealed. Mitofusin 2 (Mfn2) is a mitochondrial fusion protein involved in the inflammatory response. Here, we investigated whether Mfn2 confers the anti-inflammatory effects of CBD. We found that treatment with CBD decreased the levels of tumor necrosis factor α, interleukin 6, inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), and ionized calcium-binding adaptor molecule-1 (Iba1) in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-challenged microglia. CBD also significantly suppressed the increase in reactive oxygen species (ROS) and the decline of mitochondrial membrane potential in BV-2 cells subjected to LPS. Interestingly, CBD treatment increased the expression of Mfn2, while knockdown of Mfn2 blocked the effect of CBD. By contrast, overexpression of Mfn2 reversed the increase in the levels of iNOS, COX-2, and Iba1 induced by Mfn2 small interfering RNA. In mice challenged with LPS, we found that CBD ameliorated the anxiety responses and cognitive deficits, increased the level of Mfn2, and decreased the expression of Iba1. Since neuro-inflammation and microglial activation are the common events that are observed in the experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) model of multiple sclerosis, we treated EAE mice with CBD. Mice that received CBD showed amelioration of clinical signs, reduced inflammatory response, and increased myelin basic protein level. Most importantly, the adeno-associated virus delivery of short hairpin RNA against Mfn2 reversed the protective effects of CBD. Altogether, these results indicate that Mfn2 is an essential immunomodulator conferring the anti-inflammatory effects of CBD. Our results also shed new light on the mechanisms underlying the protective effects of CBD against inflammatory diseases including multiple sclerosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Motor-Imagery-based Brain-Computer Interface (MI-BCI) is a promising technology to assist communication, movement, and neurological rehabilitation for motor-impaired individuals. Electroencephalography (EEG) decoding techniques using deep learning (DL) possess noteworthy advantages due to automatic feature extraction and end-to-end learning. However, the DL-based EEG decoding models tend to show large variations due to intersubject variability of EEG, which results from inconsistencies of different subjects' optimal hyperparameters. This study proposes a multi-branch multi-attention mechanism EEGNet model (MBMANet) for robust decoding. It applies the multi-branch EEGNet structure to achieve various feature extractions. Further, the different attention mechanisms introduced in each branch attain diverse adaptive weight adjustments. This combination of multi-branch and multi-attention mechanisms allows for multi-level feature fusion to provide robust decoding for different subjects. The MBMANet model has a four-classification accuracy of 83.18% and kappa of 0.776 on the BCI Competition IV-2a dataset, which outperforms other eight CNN-based decoding models. This consistently satisfactory performance across all nine subjects indicates that the proposed model is robust. The combine of multi-branch and multi-attention mechanisms empowers the DL-based models to adaptively learn different EEG features, which provides a feasible solution for dealing with data variability. It also gives the MBMANet model more accurate decoding of motion intentions and lower training costs, thus improving the MI-BCI's utility and robustness. • A multi-branch, multi-attention model is proposed for robust MI-BCI decoding. • The multi-attention module achieves multi-level EEG representation. • End-to-end decoding without subject-specific hyperparameter optimization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The convolutional neural network (CNN) has emerged as a powerful tool for decoding electroencephalogram (EEG), which owns the potential use in the event-related potential-based brain–computer interface (ERP-BCI). However, the intra-individual difference of ERP makes the traditional learning models trained on static EEG data hard to decode when the EEG features vary along the time, which limits the long-time performance of the model. Addressing this problem, this study proposes a three-dimension CNN (3D-CNN)-based model to decode the ERPs dynamically. As input, the EEG is transformed into a brain topographic map stream along time. Then the 3D-CNN applies three-dimension kernels to capture the dynamical characteristic of spatial feature at several time points. Ten subjects participated in a cross-time task for 6 or 12 h. The 3D-CNN shows higher accuracies and shorter computational cost than the baseline models of the 2D-CNN, the long short term memory (LSTM), the back propagation (BP), and the fisher linear discriminant analysis (FLDA) when detecting the ERPs. In addition, four schemes of the 3D-CNN are compared to explore the influence of the structure on the performance. This result demonstrates advanced robustness of the 3D-CNN kernel to the intra-individual EEG difference, helping to launch a more practical EEG decoding model for a long-time use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To investigate the relationship between serum cyclophilin A (CyPA) and matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) levels and mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).Methods: Study subjects underwent whole-night in-laboratory polysomnography (PSG), and all participants were scored using a neuropsychological scale and peripheral blood samples were collected the next morning. The presence and severity of OSA were assessed with the apnea hypopnea index (AHI), and OSA was defined as AHI ≥5 events/hour. MCI was defined as the MoCA ≤25, and met the revised Mayo Clinic criteria. Serum CyPA and MMP-9 levels were measured with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs). A univariate analysis and a logistic model were used to assess risk factors for MCI in patients with OSA. A correlation analysis was performed to estimate whether a linear relationship existed between serum CyPA and MMP-9 levels and the severity of cerebral small vessel disease (CSVD) and white matter hyperintensities (WMHs). A linear regression analysis was used to clarify the relationship between serum CyPA and MMP-9 levels and the degree of cognitive impairment in patients with OSA.Results: The 186 patients who met the criteria for inclusion and exclusion comprised 71 patients with OSA presenting with MCI (OSA + MCI), 73 patients with OSA without MCI (OSA-MCI), and 42 controls. Patients with OSA + MCI presented higher serum CyPA and MMP-9 levels than patients in the OSA-MCI (11.56 ± 4.52 ng/ml vs 9.95 ± 3.63 ng/ml, p = 0.020; 597.71 ± 204.41 ng/ml vs 523.05 ± 205.47 ng/ml, p = 0.030) and control groups (11.56 ± 4.52 ng/ml vs 8.80 ± 3.71 ng/m, p = 0.001; 597.71 ± 204.41 ng/ml vs 490.39 ± 155.07 ng/ml, p = 0.002). The logistic regression analysis revealed that both CyPA (OR: 1.111, 95% CIs: 1.012-1.219, p = 0.027) and MMP-9 levels (OR: 1.003, 95% CIs: 1.000-1.004, p = 0.011) contributed significantly to MCI in patients with OSA. In the OSA + MCI group, positive correlations were observed between serum CyPA and MMP-9 levels with Scheltens scores (r = 0.437, p = 0.000; r = 0.613, p = 0.000, respectively) and total CSVD burden scores (r = 0.318, p = 0.003; r = 0.487, p = 0.000, respectively). Serum CyPA and MMP-9 levels were linearly negatively correlated with mean oxygen saturation during sleep (mean SaO2) (r = -0.595, p = 0.000; r = -0.570, p = 0.000). There was linear correlation between mean SaO2 and MoCA scores by Pearson's correlation coefficient (r = 0.403, p = 0.000). The linear regression analysis revealed negative correlations between serum CyPA and MMP-9 levels and the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) scores (r = -0.528, p = 0.000; r = -0.459, p = 0.000, respectively), and serum CyPA levels were negatively correlated with score of cognitive subdomainss, including visuo-executive function, attention and delayed recall. However, serum MMP-9 levels were negatively correlated with score of cognitive subdomains, including visuo-executive function and delayed recall.Conclusions: Increased serum levels of CyPA and MMP-9 are associated with MCI in OSA patients and directly related to the severity of CSVD and WMHs. The results suggest that damage to the blood-brain barrier (BBB) may be involved in the early stages of cognitive impairment in patients with OSA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many precise personalized learning recommendations in massive open online courses (MOOCs) have emerged in the intelligence education field. Up to now, most researches simply put the dual learner-resources relations into consideration and are short of studies looking deep into its intrinsic social relation, thus rarely introducing the influential factors such as social trust, which means to apply the mutual trust relation between learners in the precise personalized learning recommendation. Therefore, we propose a personalized learning recommendation method based on learners' trust and conduct a quantitative analysis on two aspects: social trust and influence, so as to realize a precise personalized learning recommendation service. First, we establish a new module on social trust scale which integrates the interactive information and preference degree to reveal the implicit trust relation between learners in social networks and construct social trust networks. Next, we adopt improved structural hole (ISH) algorithm by integrating the topological structure of social trust network with learners' interactive information and identify the most influential learners cluster by the ISH algorithm. For the final stage, we predict the score of target learners based on explicit and implicit feedback information and realize the personalized learning recommendation for new learners. Since the score is predicted, we compare MAE and RMSE in two real-world datasets which are Canvas Network and Wanke website, respectively. The result of experiment validates the accuracy and effectiveness of our recommendation model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is currently the third leading cancer and commonly develops from chronic intestinal inflammation. A strong association was found between gut microbiota and intestinal inflammation and carcinogenic risk. Flavonoids, which are abundant in vegetables and fruits, can inhibit inflammation, regulate gut microbiota, protect gut barrier integrity, and modulate immune cell function, thereby attenuating colitis and preventing carcinogenesis. Upon digestion, about 90% of flavonoids are transported to the colon without being absorbed in the small intestine. This phenomenon increases the abundance of beneficial bacteria and enhances the production of short-chain fatty acids. The gut microbe further metabolizes these flavonoids. Interestingly, some metabolites of flavonoids play crucial roles in anti-inflammation and anti-tumor effects. This review summarizes the modulatory effect of flavonoids on gut microbiota and their metabolism by intestinal microbe under disease conditions, including inflammatory bowel disease, colitis-associated cancer (CAC), and CRC. We focus on dietary flavonoids and microbial interactions in intestinal mucosal barriers as well as intestinal immune cells. Results provide novel insights to better understand the crosstalk between dietary flavonoids and gut microbiota and support the standpoint that dietary flavonoids prevent intestinal inflammation and carcinogenesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• This is one of the first studies to investigate the changes in the cognitive process of the driver's situational awareness(SA) after triggering TOR under L3 level autonomous driving conditions. • The proposed model is based on the theory of attention allocation, which allows the SA model to be quantitatively analyzed specifically in related to different task scenarios through the role of parameter adjustment. • This study explored how the drivers' SA changes in different road scenarios by designing five road scenarios with different radii of curvature. • An experiment with 90 participants using driving simulator was conducted for different road scenarios, and the results have proved the validity of the proposed model. During the operation of the L3 automated driving system, since there is no need to supervise the vehicle at all times, the driver is often disengaged from the driving task and engages in a variety of non-driving-related tasks (NDRTs). When the autonomous driving system (ADS) encounters an unexpected situation and issues a takeover request (TOR), whether the driver can recover the situation awareness (SA) in time is the key to ensure the safety of the takeover. In this study, the theory of attention resource allocation is introduced to more accurately model the dynamic process of the SA recovery. Moreover, the attention allocation model is further developed, and the affecting factors of attention allocation are quantified. An experiment with 90 participants using driving simulator was conducted for different road scenarios to verify the proposed SA model. The model proposed in this study can accurately predict the SA value of the driver under different road scenarios and the time required for the driver to recover to the maximum SA value, which provides a reference for the scientific design of dynamic takeover lead time. The results also show that as the radius of curvature of the road decreased, the level of SA recovery would become progressively worse. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electrocatalytic energy conversion is one of the most promising pathways to develop clean and renewable energy technologies, and the development of high‐performance electrocatalysts to improve the energy conversion efficiency is of paramount importance. Metal nanocrystals with twin defects possess unique features, including lattice strain and high density of low‐coordinated atoms at the twin boundary, endowing them with excellent catalytic performance in various electrocatalytic reactions. Herein, we briefly summarize recent advances in the synthesis of metal nanocrystals with various twin structures, recent breakthroughs related to electrocatalytic applications of twin metal nanocrystals are also overviewed. Finally, the major challenges and perspectives for future development of twin metal nanocrystals in electrochemical applications are proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study models emissions quantities and neighboring exposure concentrations of six airborne pollutants, including PM10, PM2.5, crystalline silica, arsenic, uranium, and barium, which resulted from the disposal of Marcellus shale drill cuttings waste during the 2011–2017 period. Using these predicted exposures, this study evaluates current setback distances required in Pennsylvania from waste facilities. For potential residents living at the perimeter of the current setback distance, 274 m (900 ft), a waste disposal rate of 612.4 metric tons per day at landfills (the 99th percentile in record) does not result in exceedances of the exposure limits for any of the six investigated pollutants. However, the current setback distance can result in exceedance with respect to the 24-hr daily concentration standards for PM10 and PM2.5 established in the National Air Ambient Quality Standards (NAAQS), if daily waste disposal rate surpasses 900 metric tons per day. Dry depositions of barium-containing and uranium-containing particulate matter should not be a danger to public health based on these results. To investigate the air quality impacts of waste transportation and the potential for reductions, this article describes an optimization of landfill locations in Pennsylvania indicating the potential benefits in reduced environmental health hazard level possible by decreasing the distance traveled by waste disposal trucks. This strategy could reduce annual emissions of PM10 and PM2.5 by a mean of 64% and reduce the expected number of annual fatal accidents by nearly half, and should be considered a potential risk management goal in the long run. Therefore, policy to limit or encourage reduction of distances traveled by waste removal trucks and manage setback distances as a function of delivered waste quantities is merited. This study shows the necessity of reviewing current setback distance required in Pennsylvania, which might not ensure 24-hr mean PM10 and PM2.5 levels below the values stated in National Ambient Air Quality Standards for the residents living at the perimeter. Furthermore, this study also reveals potential tremendous benefits from optimizing location of landfills accepting drill cuttings within Pennsylvania, with PM10 and PM2.5 emission, total distance traveled shrinking, and number of fatal accidents shrinking by nearly half. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Traditional training methods need to collect a large amount of data for every subject to train a subject-specific classifier, which causes subjects fatigue and training burden. This study proposes a novel training method, TrAdaBoost based on cross-validation and an adaptive threshold (CV-T-TAB), to reduce the amount of data required for training by selecting and combining multiple subjects' classifiers that perform well on a new subject to train a classifier. This method adopts cross-validation to extend the amount of the new subject's training data and sets an adaptive threshold to select the optimal combination of the classifiers. Twenty-five subjects participated in the N200- and P300-based brain–computer interface. The study compares CV-T-TAB to five traditional training methods by testing them on the training of a support vector machine. The accuracy, information transfer rate, area under the curve, recall and precision are used to evaluate the performances under nine conditions with different amounts of data. CV-T-TAB outperforms the other methods and retains a high accuracy even when the amount of data is reduced to one-third of the original amount. The results imply that CV-T-TAB is effective in improving the performance of a subject-specific classifier with a small amount of data by adopting multiple subjects' classifiers, which reduces the training cost. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) are important components of dissolved organic matter (DOM) in soil. A change in the concentration of soil DOM leads to changes in the soil carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) pools and the emergence of potential pollution. Many studies have reported that the concentrations of soil DOM could be significantly influenced by land management practices. However, the results obtained from these studies are inconsistent, and the effects of environmental factors on the responses of DOM concentrations to such management practices remain unclear. The aims of this study were to: (1) synthesize the available datasets and elucidate the general patterns of changes in soil DOM concentrations in response to different land management practices; and (2) probe how the responses of DOM concentrations to management practices were affected by environmental factors (e.g. , altitude, climate, and soil properties). Data from 942 observations in 184 publications were collected, integrated, and statistically analyzed. The meta-analysis result shows that overall, N fertilization, liming, organic amendment addition, and vegetation cover significantly increased the concentrations of soil DOM, whereas tillage decreased DOC concentrations. The magnitude of all positive and negative effects was driven by implemented management practices. Generally, a threshold range might exist for the application rate and duration of the management measures that could cause significant changes in DOM concentrations. In addition, DOC concentrations were more responsive to N fertilization and liming than were DON concentrations, indicating that the changes in the two variables were not correlated in each management practice. The results also indicate that the responses of DOM concentrations to management practices could be regulated by the altitude, climate (e.g. , mean annual temperature and precipitation), and soil property factors (e.g. , total C, total N, C:N ratio, clay content, and initial soil pH). In conclusion, our study suggests that in order to maintain proper soil DOM concentrations in an ecosystem, not only the type and implementation of management practices but also the local environmental factors should be considered when proposing a land management plan. Highlights • Management practices significantly affected soil DOM concentrations. • Changes in DOC and DON concentrations were not correlated in each management practice. • Responses of DOM to management practices could be regulated by altitude, climate, and soil property factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Increasing command generation rate of an event-related potential-based brain-robot system is challenging, because of limited information transfer rate of a brain-computer interface system. To improve the rate, we propose a dual stimuli approach that is flashing a robot image and is scanning another robot image simultaneously. Two kinds of event-related potentials, N200 and P300 potentials, evoked in this dual stimuli condition are decoded by a convolutional neural network. Compared with the traditional approaches, this proposed approach significantly improves the online information transfer rate from 23.0 or 17.8 to 39.1 bits/min at an accuracy of 91.7%. These results suggest that combining multiple types of stimuli to evoke distinguishable ERPs might be a promising direction to improve the command generation rate in the brain-computer interface. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Somatic embryogenesis is an example of induced cellular totipotency, where embryos develop from vegetative cells rather than from gamete fusion. Somatic embryogenesis can be induced in vitro by exposing explants to growth regulators and/or stress treatments. The BABY BOOM (BBM) and LEAFY COTYLEDON1 (LEC1) and LEC2 transcription factors are key regulators of plant cell totipotency, as ectopic overexpression of either transcription factor induces somatic embryo formation from Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) seedlings without exogenous growth regulators or stress treatments. Although LEC and BBM proteins regulate the same developmental process, it is not known whether they function in the same molecular pathway. We show that BBM transcriptionally regulates LEC1 and LEC2, as well as the two other LAFL genes, FUSCA3 (FUS3) and ABSCISIC ACID INSENSITIVE3 (ABI3). LEC2 and ABI3 quantitatively regulate BBM-mediated somatic embryogenesis, while FUS3 and LEC1 are essential for this process. BBM-mediated somatic embryogenesis is dose and context dependent, and the context-dependent phenotypes are associated with differential LAFL expression. We also uncover functional redundancy for somatic embryogenesis among other Arabidopsis BBM-like proteins and show that one of these proteins, PLETHORA2, also regulates LAFL gene expression. Our data place BBM upstream of other major regulators of plant embryo identity and totipotency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The most popular noninvasive Brain Robot Interaction (BRI) technology uses the electroencephalogram- (EEG-) based Brain Computer Interface (BCI), to serve as an additional communication channel, for robot control via brainwaves. This technology is promising for elderly or disabled patient assistance with daily life. The key issue of a BRI system is to identify human mental activities, by decoding brainwaves, acquired with an EEG device. Compared with other BCI applications, such as word speller, the development of these applications may be more challenging since control of robot systems via brainwaves must consider surrounding environment feedback in real-time, robot mechanical kinematics, and dynamics, as well as robot control architecture and behavior. This article reviews the major techniques needed for developing BRI systems. In this review article, we first briefly introduce the background and development of mind-controlled robot technologies. Second, we discuss the EEG-based brain signal models with respect to generating principles, evoking mechanisms, and experimental paradigms. Subsequently, we review in detail commonly used methods for decoding brain signals, namely, preprocessing, feature extraction, and feature classification, and summarize several typical application examples. Next, we describe a few BRI applications, including wheelchairs, manipulators, drones, and humanoid robots with respect to synchronous and asynchronous BCI-based techniques. Finally, we address some existing problems and challenges with future BRI techniques. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper develops an event-related potential (ERP)-based adaptive model for the control of humanoid robot movements in an environment cluttered with obstacles based on live video feedback. This model adaptively determines the repetition number according to an individual’s mental state to speed up the robot control cycle. N200 and P300 potential features increase in the frontal and occipital areas when using robot images as visual stimuli, so it is able to effectively recognize target visual stimuli by processing Fisher’s linear discriminant analysis (FLDA) and to identify a subject’s intention by using support vector machine (SVM), in parallel. The offline evaluations show that, compared with a nonadaptive model, the adaptive model increases the accuracy rate from 88.8% to 92.9%, a change of 4.1%, and the information transfer rate (ITR) from 41.3 to 46.3 bits/min, a change of 5.0 bits/min. Eight subjects participated in telepresence controlling a NAO humanoid robot to move in an office environment cluttered with obstacles. The successful maneuvers demonstrate that the brain-controlled humanoid robot can be applied for surveillance and exploration in unknown environments based on live video feedback, which are evaluated by using new metrics for the performance of the brain–robot interaction (BRI) system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Achieving recognizable visual event-related potentials plays an important role in improving the success rate in telepresence control of a humanoid robot via N200 or P300 potentials. The aim of this research is to intensively investigate ways to induce N200 potentials with obvious features by flashing robot images (images with meaningful information) and by flashing pictures containing only solid color squares (pictures with incomprehensible information). Comparative studies have shown that robot images evoke N200 potentials with recognizable negative peaks at approximately 260ms in the frontal and central areas. The negative peak amplitudes increase, on average, from V, induced by flashing the squares, to V, induced by flashing the robot images. The data analyses support that the N200 potentials induced by the robot image stimuli exhibit recognizable features. Compared with the square stimuli, the robot image stimuli increase the average accuracy rate by 9.92%, from 83.33% to 93.25%, and the average information transfer rate by 24.56bits/min, from 72.18bits/min to 96.74 bits/min, in a single repetition. This finding implies that the robot images might provide the subjects with more information to understand the visual stimuli meanings and help them more effectively concentrate on their mental activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An asynchronous event-related potential-based brain computer interface (ERP-BCI) permits the subjects to output intentions at their own pace, which provides a more free and practical communication pathways without the need for muscle activity. The core of constructing this type of system is to discriminate both the intentions and brain states. This study proposes a fisher linear discriminant analysis classification algorithm fused with naïve Bayes (B-FLDA) for the ERP-BCI to simultaneous recognize the subjects' intentions, working and idle states. This method uses the spectral characteristics of visual-evoked potential and the time-domain characteristics of ERP to simultaneously detect brain states and target stimulus, and obtain the final discrimination result through probability fusion. The accuracy and the information transfer rate increase to 98.61% and 62.80 bits/min under 10 repetitions and 1 repetition, respectively. The three parameters of receiver operator characteristic curve have achieved better performance. Ten subjects participate in this study with the proposed algorithms and two other control methods. The accuracy and information transfer rate of this algorithm are better than the other methods. It indicates that the naïve Bayes-FLDA algorithm is able to improve the performance of an asynchronous BCI system by detecting the intentions and states simultaneously. • A novel classification algorithm for asynchronous event-related potential-based brain-computer interface. • A triple classifier simultaneously detects the brain states, targets, and non-targets with higher accuracies. • A naïve Bayes classifier calculates the sample probabilities based on the distance of the linear discriminant analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We have previously shown that inhibition of cAMP-specific 3′,5′-cyclic phosphodiesterase 4 (PDE4) protects against cellular toxicity in neuronal cells. Since α-synuclein (α-syn) toxicity contributes to the neurodegeneration of Parkinson's disease (PD). The aim of this study was to explore the effects and mechanisms of PDE4 on α-syn-induced neuronal toxicity. Using mutant human A53T α-syn overexpressed SH-SY5Y cells, we found that PDE4B knockdown reduced cellular apoptosis. Roflupram (ROF, 20 μM), a selective PDE4 inhibitor, produced similar protective effects and restored the morphological alterations of mitochondria. Mechanistic studies identified that α-syn enhanced the phosphorylation of Parkin at Ser131, followed by the decreased mitochondrial translocation of Parkin. Whereas both PDE4B knockdown and PDE4 inhibition by ROF blocked the effects of α-syn on Parkin phosphorylation and mitochondrial translocation. Moreover, PDE4 inhibition reversed the increase in the phosphorylation of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) induced by α-syn. ROF treatment also reduced the binding of p38 MAPK to Parkin. Consistently, overexpression of PDE4B blocked the roles of ROF on p38 MAPK phosphorylation, Parkin phosphorylation, and the subsequent mitochondrial translocation of parkin. Furthermore, PDE4B overexpression attenuated the protective role of ROF, as evidenced by reduced mitochondria membrane potential and increased cellular apoptosis. Interestingly, ROF failed to suppress α-syn-induced cytotoxicity in the presence of a protein kinase A (PKA) inhibitor H-89. Our findings indicate that PDE4 facilitates α-syn-induced cytotoxicity via the PKA/p38 MAPK/Parkin pathway in SH-SY5Y cells overexpressing A53T mutant α-synuclein. PDE4 inhibition by ROF is a promising strategy for the prevention and treatment of α-syn-induced neurodegeneration. • PDE4 inhibition by roflupram attenuated cellular apoptosis in the α-syn A53T model • Roflupram inhibited the phosphorylation of Parkin and p38 MAPK • Roflupram decreased the interaction between p38 MAPK and Parkin • Roflupram promoted the mitochondrial translocation of Parkin • The protective effects of roflupram were mediated in a PKA-dependent way [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background/Aims: Integrin activation and lymphocyte migration to the vascular intima is a key event in early atherosclerosis. α4β7 integrin (LPAM-1) and its ligand, mucosal addressin cell adhesion molecule (MAdCAM-1) are known to play an important role in homing of activated lymphocytes to gut-associated lymphoid tissues. However, it is unclear whether α4β7 integrin is involved in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis. Methods: The expressions of α4β7 integrin and its ligands in atherosclerosis plaques from 12 week high fat diet (HFD) fed ApoE-/- and C57BL/6 mice were examined using immunofluorescent and immunohistochemical assays, respectively. We also generated ApoE/β7 double deficient mice and compared atherosclerotic lesion development in β7+/+ApoE-/- and β7-/-ApoE-/- mice that were fed with HFD for 12 weeks. Results: We found an upregulation of α4β7 integrin and its ligands VCAM-1 and MAdCAM-1 at atherosclerosis plaques in Apolipoprotein E deficient (ApoE-/-) mice fed with HFD for 12 weeks. Over the 12 week HFD period, peripheral blood lymphocyte (PBL) expression of α4β7 integrin increased in parallel with aortic lesion size. A removal of α4β7 integrin by genetic deletion of the β7 chain in the ApoE-/- mouse resulted in a markedly decreased 12 week-HFD atherosclerotic plaque area. β7-/- ApoE-/- macrophages showed reduced acetylated and native LDL uptake and phagocytic activity, revealing possible roles for α4β7 at two distinct stages of macrophage dysfunction during atherogenesis. Finally, a reduced activity of integrin downstream signalling components focal adhesion kinase (FAK) and MAPK/ERK1/2 in macrophage indicates their possible engagement during α4β7 integrin signalling in atherosclerosis. Conclusions: Together our results reveal a critical role of α4β7 in diet-induced atherosclerosis in mouse. © 2014 S. Karger AG, Basel [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• This is one of the first study to study drivers' satisfaction on autonomous vehicle. • Self-efficacy and mental workload are considered as main affecting factors. • The influence of different road scenarios (simple, medium and complex) are studied. • The effect of mental workload on satisfaction is mediated by driving self-efficacy. With the increasing popularity of autonomous vehicles, it is important to understand their user satisfaction because such aspects are likely to determine their future development. This article studied the effects of perceived benefit, perceived risk, interpersonal feelings, infrastructure adaptability, driving self-efficacy and mental workload on satisfaction when using autonomous vehicles, designed three road scenarios (simple, general, and complex), and established a structural equation model of satisfaction with mediators. A total of 553 responses were retrieved through online questionnaires, the path coefficients among various factors and indicators were calculated, and the importance of each factor in different road scenarios was discussed. The results show that the six factors have different association with user satisfaction in different road scenarios. The effect of mental workload on satisfaction in all road scenarios is mediated by self-efficacy. These results provide insights for the improvement of the autonomous vehicle industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To achieve large-scale development of triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) for water wave energy harvesting and powering the colossal sensors widely distributed in the ocean, facile and scalable TENGs with high output are urgently required. Here, an elastic self-recovering hybrid nanogenerator (ES-HNG) is proposed for water wave energy harvesting and marine environmental monitoring. The elastic skeletal support of the ES-HNG is manufactured using three-dimensional (3D) printing technology, which is more conducive to the large-scale integration of the ES-HNG. Moreover, the combination of a TENG and an electromagnetic generator (EMG) optimizes the utilization of device space, leading to enhanced energy harvesting efficiency. Experimental results demonstrate that the TENG achieves a peak power output of 42.68 mW, and the EMG reaches a peak power output of 4.40 mW. Furthermore, various marine environment monitoring sensors, such as a self-powered wireless meteorological monitoring system, a wireless alarm system, and a water quality monitoring pen, have been successfully powered by the sophisticated ES-HNG. This work introduces an ES-HNG for water wave energy harvesting, which demonstrates potential in marine environment monitoring and offers a new solution for the sustainable development of the marine internet of things. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

After more than five decades, Moore's Law for transistors is approaching the end of the international technology roadmap of semiconductors (ITRS). The fate of complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) architecture has become increasingly unknown. In this era, 3D transistors in the form of gate-all-around (GAA) transistors are being considered as an excellent solution to scaling down beyond the 5 nm technology node, which solves the difficulties of carrier transport in the channel region which are mainly rooted in short channel effects (SCEs). In parallel to Moore, during the last two decades, transistors with a fully depleted SOI (FDSOI) design have also been processed for low-power electronics. Among all the possible designs, there are also tunneling field-effect transistors (TFETs), which offer very low power consumption and decent electrical characteristics. This review article presents new transistor designs, along with the integration of electronics and photonics, simulation methods, and continuation of CMOS process technology to the 5 nm technology node and beyond. The content highlights the innovative methods, challenges, and difficulties in device processing and design, as well as how to apply suitable metrology techniques as a tool to find out the imperfections and lattice distortions, strain status, and composition in the device structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Weakly Supervised Semantic Segmentation is a crucial task in computer vision. However, existing methods that utilize Class Activation Maps (CAMs) with classification tasks can only identify a small part of the region. To address this limitation, we propose a novel Attention Activation Remodulation (AAR) scheme that leverages traditional CAMs and the remodulation branch to obtain weighted CAMs for recalibrated supervision. The AAR scheme re-arranges important features' distribution from the channel and space perspectives, which regulates segmentation-oriented activation responses. In addition, we propose a Feature Pixel Extraction Module (FPEM) that utilizes contextual information to improve pixel prediction. Furthermore, the proposed scheme can be combined with other methods to improve overall performance. Extensive experiments on the PASCAL VOC 2012 dataset demonstrate the effectiveness of the AAR mechanism and FPEM module. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of our study was to investigate the correlation between neural-derived plasma exosomal amyloid-β (Aβ)42, total tau (T-tau) and tau phosphorylated at threonine 181 (P-T181-tau) protein levels and cognitive impairment in patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). There were 122 subjects without dementia included in the study: 27 patients with OSA and mild cognitive impairment (MCI), 52 OSA patients without MCI, and 43 subjects diagnosed with simple snoring but not MCI as the control group. Neuronal-derived exosomal proteins were measured by ELISA kits for Aβ42, T-tau and P-T181-tau. The cognitive function was evaluated by a Chinese version of the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) questionnaire, and a normal cognitive score was ≥26. The exosomal Aβ42, T-tau and P-T181-tau levels in the OSA with MCI group were higher than those in the OSA group. The Aβ42, T-tau, and P-T181-tau levels in the plasma neuronal-derived exosomes were associated with an increased risk of cognitive impairment in OSA patients after additional adjustment for age, gender, education, vascular risk factors, apnea–hypopnea index (AHI) or oxygen reduction index (ODI). Furthermore, there were also significant associations between Aβ42, T-tau, and P-T181-tau in neural-derived plasma exosomes and Epworth Sleepiness Scale, AHI, and ODI in OSA patients. After 1 year of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) intervention, the neuronal-derived exosome levels of Aβ42, T-tau, and P-T181-tau were significantly lower than those at baseline (P = 0.001, P = 0.012, and P = 0.034). These findings indicate that peripheral blood levels of neuronal-derived exosomal Aβ and tau proteins were increased in OSA patients with cognitive impairment. CPAP interventions could possibly improve cognitive function and be associated with decreased levels of exosomal Aβ and tau proteins. • Exosomal Aβ and tau proteins were increased in OSA and OSA with MCI patients. • Exosomal Aβ and tau proteins levels were correlated with ESS and MOCA scores in OSA patients. • CPAP interventions could be decreases the exosomal Aβ and tau levels in OSA patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The purpose of our study was to investigate the correlation between neural-derived plasma exosomal amyloid-β (Aβ)42, total tau (T-tau) and tau phosphorylated at threonine 181 (P-T181-tau) protein levels and cognitive impairment in patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).Methods: There were 122 subjects without dementia included in the study: 27 patients with OSA and mild cognitive impairment (MCI), 52 OSA patients without MCI, and 43 subjects diagnosed with simple snoring but not MCI as the control group. Neuronal-derived exosomal proteins were measured by ELISA kits for Aβ42, T-tau and P-T181-tau. The cognitive function was evaluated by a Chinese version of the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) questionnaire, and a normal cognitive score was ≥26.Results: The exosomal Aβ42, T-tau and P-T181-tau levels in the OSA with MCI group were higher than those in the OSA group. The Aβ42, T-tau, and P-T181-tau levels in the plasma neuronal-derived exosomes were associated with an increased risk of cognitive impairment in OSA patients after additional adjustment for age, gender, education, vascular risk factors, apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) or oxygen reduction index (ODI). Furthermore, there were also significant associations between Aβ42, T-tau, and P-T181-tau in neural-derived plasma exosomes and Epworth Sleepiness Scale, AHI, and ODI in OSA patients. After 1 year of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) intervention, the neuronal-derived exosome levels of Aβ42, T-tau, and P-T181-tau were significantly lower than those at baseline (P = 0.001, P = 0.012, and P = 0.034).Conclusions: These findings indicate that peripheral blood levels of neuronal-derived exosomal Aβ and tau proteins were increased in OSA patients with cognitive impairment. CPAP interventions could possibly improve cognitive function and be associated with decreased levels of exosomal Aβ and tau proteins. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• First study comparing the effects of the robot and non-robot motion images on event-related potentials. • Concreteness of robot motion image improves the event-related potentials. • The robot motion image performs better than the abstract and meaningless images in the ERP-based BCI system. Event-related potential (ERP)-based brain-computer interface (BCI) has been widely used in robot control. Increasing the amplitude of the ERPs is key for improving the performance of ERP-based BCI. However, using images of robot motion as visual stimuli has not been studied widely. The aim of this study is to explore the concreteness of robot motion images on ERPs. Fifteen subjects used five kinds of visual spellers employing different images as visual stimuli: squares, arrows, a single kind of robot motion, multiple kinds of robot motions, and multiple kinds of robot motions with arrows. The three robot motion stimuli induced larger N200 and P300 potentials than non-robot motion stimuli. The topography shows that robot motion stimuli also evoke stronger negativities in the anterior and occipital areas. Concrete images provide more information to the subject about the robot motion, which might help the brain extract the meaning of the image more automatically. We use a support vector machine to detect the subject's intentions. There is substantial improvement in the classification performance when using robot motion images as visual stimuli, which implies that concrete visual stimuli improve the performance of the ERP-based BCI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We study a WOM diffusion problem of a new and innovative green product. • Pricing strategies are proposed to help firms to diffuse green products. • Green product diffusions in Bertrand competition and Stackelberg game markets are studied and compared. • Green product design strategies are investigated for green product diffusion. • WOM-featured diffusion model is formulated to further study the green product diffusion problem. Green products are gaining popularity because of their environmental friendliness compared with conventional products. This study examines a word-of-mouth (WOM) diffusion problem of a newly launched green product and investigates the effects of consumers' environmental awareness (CEA). Analytical results show that CEA significantly affects green product diffusion in terms of firms' pricing strategies and market shares. The market structure also has effects on diffusing a green product: the pricing strategies and environmental performance of diffusing a green product in a Bertrand competition market are different from those in a Stackelberg game market. When considering green-design decision, it is interesting to show that the green product's price decreases with the increase of CEA, which is contrary to the pricing strategy without green design. From the numerical study of the CEA-featured WOM diffusion case, we find that CEA-featured WOM does not affect the pricing strategies of the green and conventional products, but does have a significant impact on the market shares of both products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the advancement of society, ensuring the safety of personnel involved in municipal construction projects, particularly in the context of pandemic control measures, has become a matter of utmost importance. This paper introduces a security measure for municipal engineering, combining deep learning with object detection technology. It proposes a lightweight artificial intelligence (AI) detection method capable of simultaneously identifying individuals wearing masks and safety helmets. The method primarily incorporates the ShuffleNetv2 feature extraction mechanism within the framework of the YOLOv5s network to reduce computational overhead. Additionally, it employs the ECA attention mechanism and optimized loss functions to generate feature maps with more comprehensive information, thereby enhancing the precision of target detection. Experimental results indicate that this algorithm improves the mean average precision (mAP) value by 4.3%. Furthermore, it reduces parameter and computational loads by 54.8% and 53.8%, respectively, effectively striking a balance between lightweight operation and precision. This study serves as a valuable reference for research pertaining to lightweight target detection in the realm of municipal construction safety measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, transglutaminase (TG), glucono-δ-lactone (GDL), and citric acid (CA) were used to induce the formation of whey protein isolate (WPI)-milk fat emulsion gels to embed lutein, and the emulsion gels induced in different ways were used for the preparation of processed cheese. The protective effect of emulsion gels induced in different ways on lutein was investigated, and the stability of lutein in emulsion gels and processed cheese was analyzed. The results showed that the acidification rate of CA was higher than that of GDL, which was the key step in acid-induced gels, and that the difference in acidification rate led to differences in gel structure. Compared with the 2 acid inducers (GDL and CA), TG exhibited greater potential for forming gel structures with high strength. The TG-induced emulsion gels showed the best physical stability and the highest embedding efficiency for lutein. After heat treatment (85°C), the GDL-induced emulsion gels had higher retention rate of lutein and showed good thermal stability compared with the CA-induced emulsion gels. The processed cheese added with the TG-induced emulsion gel had higher hardness and springiness compared with the processed cheese added with the other 2 kinds of emulsion gels, whereas the processed cheese added with the CA-induced emulsion gel had a lower density of network structure, showing porosity and a larger aggregated structure, but the highest bioavailability of lutein. These results provide valuable information for the formation of cold-set emulsion gel and provide the possibility for the application of emulsion gel embedding active substances in processed cheese. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs)/carbon fiber (CF) reinforcements were synthesized under different catalyst compositions and reduction conditions. The effects of the catalyst, reduction temperature and reduction time on the surface morphology, graphitization, and single filament tensile strength of the prepared CNTs/CF samples were investigated. When nickel was used as the catalyst and copper as the catalyst promoter, with the increase of copper concentration, the catalytic activity increased. Thus, the carbon source was consumed more completely, improving the abundance of CNTs with good graphitization. And the effect of repairing CF defects was more obvious, hence the single filament tensile strength accordingly increased. Besides, the increase of catalyst reduction temperature and reduction time intensified the etching of CF by catalyst, and decreased the single filament tensile strength of CF. With the deposition of CNTs, the tensile strength of CF was enhanced in varying degrees. When the concentration of cooper was 0.01 mol/L with the reduction time of 10 min and reduction temperature of 450 °C, CNTs/CF had the highest tensile strength, which can reach up to 4.51 GPa. We determined that bimetallic catalysts could adjust the catalytic activity of nickel. The change of reduction time and temperature would affect the quality of CNTs, which was helpful to obtain high quality CNTs on CF surface and improve the mechanical properties of CNTs/CF and its composites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Multiband carrierless amplitude and phase (MultiCAP) modulation is a modulation mode based on Carrierless Amplitude and Phase (CAP). To improve the capability of a short distance optical communication system for communication capacity and frequency band utilization, multiband CAP modulation technology is adopted. In this article, the diagram for MultiCAP modulation signal of signal-to-noise ratio and bit error rate was analyzed under the condition of Gamma–Gamma atmospheric turbulence channel model. The bit error rate of 4 the band CAP modulation system has been discussed under conditions of different intensity fluctuation variance and signal-to-noise ratio. The simulation results show that when the total bandwidth is constant, the larger the frequency band is, the lower bit error rate is. When the value of σ R 2 is small, the system error rate decreases with increasing signal-to-noise ratio. When the σ R 2 is larger, the system error rate decreases with decreasing σ R 2. The experimental results of atmospheric laser communication show that the receiver branch signal phase shift are well compensated and intersymbol interference is effectively suppressed after using MMA algorithm for equilibrium, and the bit error rate of each branch signal is decreased from 1 0 − 3 to 2. 4462 × 1 0 − 4. Consequently, the system transmission performances improve. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ta3N5 is a promising material for photocatalytic hydrogen production from water because of its suitable band structure for both solar energy collection and overall water splitting, while its application is restricted by severe charge recombination as well as non‐equilibrium redox capabilities. Herein, atomic‐scale N‐doped NaTaO3@Ta3N5 (NNaTaO3@Ta3N5) core‐shell cubes prepared by nitridation of cubic NaTaO3 are reported. The core‐shell heterojunction cubes present efficient and stoichiometric evolution of H2 and O2 from photocatalytic overall water splitting, with a quantum efficiency of 2.18% at 550 nm without any cocatalyst. The success relies on the Ta3N5 shell having a thickness of only ≈5 nm which enables increased lifetimes of the photogenerated charges. Moreover, the core‐shell heterojunction shows a type‐I band alignment that can steer smooth charge flow from NNaTaO3 to Ta3N5, particularly with the assistance of the shared communal Ta atoms at the interface. This efficiency can be further improved to 6.28% by in situ deposition of a Rh@Cr2O3 core‐shell cocatalyst, which is among the highest reported values over Ta3N5‐based photocatalyst. This study offers a promising pathway for the construction of well‐defined heterojunctions with manipulated charge transfer behavior for photocatalytic overall water splitting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effects of whey protein isolate (WPI)‐pectin pre‐emulsified vegetable oil on the physicochemical properties and microstructure of low‐fat yogurt (LFY) were investigated by particle size distribution, water‐holding capacity (WHC), texture, rheology, electron microscopy, storage stability, and sensory analysis. The vegetable oil was pre‐emulsified into two types of emulsions, a mixed emulsion (ME: WPI‐pectin complexes were adsorbed directly at the interface) and a bilayer emulsion (BE: Pectin was added to a previously established WPI‐stabilized interface). The results showed that yogurts added with pre‐emulsified vegetable oil (ME‐Y, BE‐Y) had significantly better quality than LFY, with better WHC, textural properties, rheological properties, and storage stability. The average particle size of ME (11.96 µm) was larger than that of BE (10.23 µm). The consistency of yogurt added with ME (ME‐Y) was significantly higher than that of yogurt added with BE (BE‐Y), at 2359.10 and 2181.12 g s, respectively. Meanwhile, ME‐Y exhibited storage stability similar to full‐fat control (FFY) and higher sensory scores. Interestingly, the WHC of BE‐Y (49.03%) was higher than that of ME‐Y (45.63%). In addition, WPI + Pectin‐Y exhibited higher WHC (53.81%) and consistency (2518.73 g s) compared to ME‐Y and BE‐Y, but the particle size distribution was not uniform, and the direct addition of WPI, pectin, and oil had no positive effect on improving the rheological properties of yogurt. Overall, the addition of WPI‐pectin pre‐emulsified vegetable oil improved the quality of LFY. These findings are particularly relevant for the production of higher quality LFY. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• CoPcF 4 has promising multiple active sites for catalytic SOCl 2. • The CoPcF 4 /AC nanocomposites induce the nucleation of nanosized LiCl both on the surface and inside. • The CoPcF 4 /AC nanocomposites offer the possibility of stable and long-life lithium primary batteries. CoPcF 4 nanorods fixed on activated carbon substrates (CoPcF 4 /AC) were created using an in situ solid approach for catalysts to improve the response of thionyl chloride (SOCl 2). Density functional theory calculations showed that the benzene rings around the CoPcF 4 molecule exhibited a positive electrostatic potential, providing multiple active sites for the SOCl 2 reduction reaction. Moreover, the combination investigations from SEM and focused ion beam-SEM indicated that a loose and porous LiCl film appeared on the surface of the carbon cathode containing CoPcF 4 /AC, facilitating the permeation of newly formed LiCl. The inside morphology of the carbon cathodes discharged displayed a substantial number of nanopores around 50 nm, which could be attributed to the CoPcF 4 /AC nanocomposites inducing the nucleation of nanosized LiCl on the surface and inside to keep the cathode with a porous structure, benefitting from the SOCl 2 reduction reaction. The Li/SOCl 2 battery catalyzed by the CoPcF 4 /AC exhibited a stable voltage platform around 2.8 V, lasted 98.2 % during the entire discharge process, and had a relative energy improvement of 181.03 % and 147.89 % compared with those containing CoPc and CoPcF 4 , respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Plasma NDEs EAAT2 level in obstructive sleep apnea patients were higher than heathy controls. • Plasma NDEs EAAT2 level is independently related to mild cognitive impairment in obstructive sleep apnea without dementia. • One year after CPAP treatment, plasma NDEs EAAT2 level was significantly lower compared with baseline. Increasing evidence supports a link between obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and cognition, and the mechanism is complex and still not well understood. We analyzed the relationship between the glutamate transporters and cognitive impairment in OSA. For this study 317 subjects without dementia, including 64 healthy controls (HCs), 140 OSA patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and 113 OSA patients without cognitive impairment were assessed. All participants who completed polysomnography, cognition and white matter hyperintensity (WMH) volume were used. Plasma neuron-derived exosomes (NDEs) excitatory amino acid transporter 2 (EAAT2) and vesicular glutamate transporter 1 (VGLUT1) proteins were measured by ELISA kits. After 1 year of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) treatment, we analyzed plasma NDEs EAAT2 level and cognition changes. Plasma NDEs EAAT2 level was significantly higher in OSA patients than in HCs. Higher plasma NDEs EAAT2 level were significantly associated with cognitive impairment than normal cognition in OSA patients. Plasma NDEs EAAT2 level was inversely associated with the total Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) scores, visuo-executive function, naming, attention, language, abstraction, delayed recall and orientation. One year after CPAP treatment, plasma NDEs EAAT2 level (P = 0.019) was significantly lower, while MoCA scores (P = 0.013) were significantly increased compared with baseline. Upregulation of neuronal glutamate transporters at baseline may reflect a self-compensatory mechanism to prevent further neuronal damage, while plasma NDEs EAAT2 level was decreased after one year of CPAP therapy, which may be due to the loss of astrocytes and neurons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, the kiwifruit branch, a kind of agricultural waste, was reused as a raw material to prepare biochar adsorbent for the removal of Pb(II) from aqueous solution. Then pristine biochar (BC) was further modified to form acid–alkali modified biochar (OBC) and chitosan modified biochar (CBC) to enhance adsorption efficiency toward Pb(II). Characterization experiments with SEM, FTIR and XRD suggested that surface functional groups and crystallization degree of OBC and CBC were all increased in comparison with BC. Batch sorption experiments showed that, compared with BC, the adsorption capacity of Pb(II) by OBC and CBC were improved by 19.57 and 8.37%, respectively. The pseudo-second-order model and the Freundlich model were better for describing the kinetics and isotherms for Pb(II) adsorption onto OBC and CBC, respectively. Accordingly, chemisorption on the heterogeneous adsorption surface played a dominant role in Pb(II) removal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• C8G levels in obstructive sleep apnea patients were higher than the controls. • C8G is independently related to mild cognitive impairment in obstructive sleep apnea. • C8G is linked with all cognitive subdomains in obstructive sleep apnea. • C8G is linearly positively correlated with white matter hyperintensity volumes. The complement system plays a crucial role in cognitive impairment in obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). The present study aimed to investigate the connections between complement component 8 gamma (C8G) levels in astrocyte-derived exosomes (ADEs) and cognitive impairment in OSA patients without dementia. This cross-sectional cohort study recruited 274 participants without dementia, including 124 OSA patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), 100 OSA patients without MCI, and 50 healthy control subjects. Enrolled participants underwent polysomnography (PSG) evaluation, neuropsychological scale assessment, magnetic resonance imaging scanning, and collection of peripheral blood samples for quantification of complement proteins in ADEs. The findings showed higher C8G concentrations in ADEs from OSA patients with MCI than in the controls and OSA without MCI group. Logistic regression analysis suggested that C8G levels in ADEs were independently associated with MCI in OSA patients. Multivariable linear regression analysis demonstrated that C8G levels in ADEs were significantly correlated with global cognitive scores and all cognitive subdomain scores after adjusting for demographic factors (age, sex, education), vascular risk factors (Body mass index, history of hypertension, diabetes, dyslipidemia), depressive symptoms measures, and apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) values. The levels of C8G were linearly positively related to the white matter hyperintensity (WMH) volumes in Pearson's correlation analysis. Our research confirmed that C8G levels are significantly associated with cognitive impairment in OSA patients, which paves the way for novel therapeutic targets for neurocognitive dysfunction progression in OSA patients in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel fluorophore (NAP-PMA) has been constructed through appending 2-pyridinemethanamine to naphthalimide. The air and moisture stable fluorophore were adopted as a colorimetric and fluorometric probe for palladium cation, revealing simultaneously good selectivity, high sensitivity and low detection limit (22.5 nM). Moreover, NAP-PMA not only exhibited a visible naked-eye color change from yellowish green to pink, but also displayed highly selective recognition to palladium acetate. In addition, NAP-PMA could be used as paper strips to quantitatively detect Pd2+ in water. Surprisingly, the developed sensing platform NAP-PMA-Pd is capable of detecting CO in living cells by "turn on" mode with high selectivity and stability, providing a potential real-time monitor for CO-involved reactions in biological systems. A colorimetric and fluorometric naphthalimide-based probe, paper strips for palladium detection and CO cell imaging is reported. [Display omitted] • A colorimetric and fluorometric probe was constructed through appending 2-pyridinemethanamine to naphthalimide. • It can realize visual and fluorescence recognition specific for palladium acetate. • The probe exhibited record low detection limit as 22.5 nM together with good selectivity. • Paper strips detection of palladium cations in aqueous media was realized. • A sensing platform was exhibited for imaging of CO in living cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hydrologic condition is a major driving force for wetland ecosystems. The influence of water regimes on vegetation distribution is of growing interest as wetlands are increasingly disturbed by climate change and intensive human activities. However, at large spatial scales, the linkage between water regimes and vegetation distribution remains poorly understood. In this study, vegetation communities in Poyang Lake wetland were classified from remote sensing imagery. Water regimes characterized by inundation duration (IDU), inundation depth (IDE), and inundation frequency were simulated using physics-based hydraulic models and were then linked with vegetation communities by a Gaussian regression model. The results showed that the Carex community was found to favor more hydrologic environments with longer IDU and deeper IDE in comparison to the Phragmites community. In addition, we found that the Carex community could survive in a relatively wider variety of hydrological conditions than the Phragmites community. For the typical sub-wetlands of the Poyang Lake National Nature Reserve (PLNNR), only the influence of IDU on the distribution of vegetation communities was significant. Outcomes of this research extend our knowledge of the dependence of wetland vegetation on hydrological conditions at larger spatial scales. The results provide practical information for ecosystem management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highly efficient and multifunctional electromagnetic wave (EMW) absorbers which can be easily processed are desirably required. Herein, cupric ammonia is creatively adopted as the catalyst precursor of the in-situ growth of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) onto carbon fiber (CF) during chemical vapor deposition. Typically, when prepared at 750 °C, N/S co-doped bamboo-like amorphous CNTs/CF was successfully synthesized, while some Cu nanoparticles were remained in CNT forests. The sample obtains an excellent absorption toward EMWs, demonstrating a minimal reflection loss of −59.28 dB at 14.1 GHz with an ultrathin thickness of 1.42 mm. Concurrently, it is over a relatively broad effective absorption bandwidth (EAB) of 3.3 GHz (12.3–15.6 GHz) with 31% loading in the paraffin matrix. And the EAB value of CA-700 reaches 3.7 GHz (14.3–18 GHz) at merely 1.45 mm. The satisfying attenuation performance mainly originates from the synergistic effects of continuous three-dimensional conducting networks, abundant interfaces, sufficient defects, and the well impedance matching. Moreover, all as-prepared samples could be potentially used as reinforcements of resin matrix composites with high strength. Therefore, a facile route is provided to produce thin, lightweight, superior and high-strength EMW absorbing materials based on CF and CNTs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]