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Mn2+ luminescence is enhanced by Ce3+ through energy transfer and the SCB:Ce3+,Mn2+ phosphor could be used for high-color-rendering WLEDs.

Developing novel luminescent materials with ideal properties is an endless project, urged by growing requirements of advances in energy saving, healthy lighting and environmental friendliness. Herein, a series of ScCaOBO

The radius of trivalent scandium ions is much smaller than those of other rare earth ions and thus research studies targeting the substitution of the scandium site with other light-emitting rare earth ions are rarely reported. In our present work, special attention is paid to the effect of Dy3+ doping on the crystal structure, atomic site occupancy and luminescence properties of the ScCaBO4 host as Dy3+ often serves as an individual activator for single-phase white light-emitting phosphors. Herein a series of ScCaBO4:Dy3+ phosphors were prepared by solid-state reactions. The phase composition was recorded by X-ray diffraction analysis and XRD refinement reveals that a pure phase could be maintained even when the Dy3+ concentration reaches 11%. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was utilized to observe the morphology and EDS mapping was used to investigate elemental distribution. The luminescence performances of the phosphors were investigated using UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectra, steady-state excitation and emission spectra and also transient luminescence decays. Dy3+ luminescence can be ascribed to its 4F9/2 → 6H15/2, 6H13/2 and 6H11/2 transitions, producing blue, yellow and red emissions. The Dy3+ concentration was further optimized at 3%, at which the CIE coordinates and fluorescence lifetimes were (0.425, 0.413) and 0.546 ms, respectively. Thermal quenching studies of the ScCaBO4:0.03Dy3+ phosphor show that Dy3+ luminescence at 400 K can maintain 60.91% of its initial value measured at room temperature. All the results indicate that the ScCaBO4:Dy3+ inorganic phosphors could be a promising single component phosphor for near-UV chip based WLEDs.

Cotton is a vital industrial crop that is gradually shifting to planting in arid areas. However, tubby-like proteins (TULPs) involved in plant response to various stresses are rarely reported in cotton. The present study exhibited that GhTULP30 transcription in cotton was induced by drought stress.The present study demonstrated the improvement of plant tolerance to drought stress by GhTULP30 through regulation of stomatal movement.GhTULP30 response to drought and salt stress was preliminarily confirmed by qRT-PCR and yeast stress experiments. Ectopic expression in Arabidopsis and endogenous gene silencing in cotton were used to determine stomatal movement. Yeast two-hybrid and spilt-luciferase were used to screen the interacting proteins.Ectopic expression of GhTULP30 in yeast markedly improved yeast cell tolerance to salt and drought. Overexpression of GhTULP30 made Arabidopsis seeds more resistant to drought and salt stress during seed germination and increased the stomata closing speed of the plant under drought stress conditions. Silencing of GhTULP30 in cotton by virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS) technology slowed down the closure speed of stomata under drought stress and decreased the length and width of the stomata. The trypan blue and diaminobenzidine staining exhibited the severity of leaf cell necrosis of GhTULP30-silenced plants. Additionally, the contents of proline, malondialdehyde, and catalase of GhTULP30-silenced plants exhibited significant variations, with obvious leaf wilting. Protein interaction experiments exhibited the interaction of GhTULP30 with GhSKP1B and GhXERICO.GhTULP30 participates in plant response to drought stress. The present study provides a reference and direction for further exploration of TULP functions in cotton plants.

The ternary ZnO-ZnFe2O4/palygorskite composite photocatalysts were fabricated via a solvothermal method followed by thermal treatment. The structure, morphology and photoelectric performances of samples were characterized, and the results indicated that ZnO/ZnFe2O4 nanoparticles with size of 25–30 nm were adequately anchored on the palygorskite fibers surface. Compared with ZnO, ZnFe2O4, ZnO/ZnFe2O4 and ZnO/palygorskite, the ZnO-ZnFe2O4/palygorskite composite photocatalysts exhibited significantly improved photocatalytic activity in degradation of methylene blue (MB). Especially, the optimal photocatalyst (ZF1.5) displayed the highest photocatalytic activity, achieving 99.68% and 99.48% degradation efficiency after 90 min of UV–vis (350 ≤ λ ≤ 780 nm) and 100 min of visible-light (λ ≥ 420 nm) irradiation, respectively. The photocatalysis degradation process matched well with the Langmuir-Hinshelwood kinetics. The obtained improvement of photocatalytic activity was ascribed to the synergetic effect of superior visible-light utilization; effective charge carrier separation and palygorskite support effect (optimize nanoparticles dispersibility, developed mesoporous structure, enlarge specific surface area and increase adsorption capacity).

A novel nanospherical hydrous titanium oxide adsorbent (hydrous titanium oxide-immobilized bovine serum albumin nanospheres, HTO-BSA-NSs) was prepared by immobilizing HTOs with a manipulated molecular mass and number of active sites for uranium on the surface of BSA-NSs. The adsorption performances of HTO-BSA-NSs were investigated in spiked natural seawater with extra 8 ppm uranium. The results demonstrated that HTO-BSA-NSs are capable of uranium capture from a complex aqueous matrix with a low uranium concentration. Meanwhile, the microbial stability of HTO-BSA-NSs in sterilized natural seawater with Marinobacter sp. was investigated and observed through an optical microscope and TEM, revealing that the wrapped HTOs could protect the BSA-NSs from the decomposition of microorganisms, and the structure and functional groups of HTO-BSA-NSs remain stable compared with the BSA-NSs. In addition, the uranium adsorption mechanism of HTO-BSA-NSs is mainly recognized as dehydrated complexation, which was concluded from characterization analysis, adsorption model fitting, and theoretical calculations based on density functional theory. The remarkable uranium adsorption performance and microbial stability of HTO-BSA-NSs indicated that they have the potential to be a low-cost and environmentally friendly adsorbent for uranium extraction from complex environments such as seawater or uranium-containing industrial wastewater.

BACKGROUND In 2017 Tuta absoluta was identified as an invasive species in China. Due to its rapid geographic expansion and the severe crop damage it causes, T. absoluta poses a serious threat to China's tomato production industry. To determine its geographic distribution and host range, intensive surveys and routine monitoring were conducted across the Chinese mainland between 2018 and 2019. The population colonization coefficient (PCC; ratio of colonized sites and prefectures) and population occurrence index (POI; ratio of infested host species and PCCs) were calculated. RESULTS In northwestern China, T. absoluta populations established in Xinjiang exhibited a medium PCC value (~0.03). In southwestern China, populations in Yunnan and its five neighboring provinces exhibited high (~0.50 in Yunnan and Guizhou), or low (

Carbon quantum dots/TiO 2 /Fe 2 O 3 photocatalytic composite was prepared through multi-step hydrothermal method. The CQDs/TiO 2 /Fe 2 O 3 composite showed enhanced photocatalytic performance for methylene blue dye photodegration when compared with TiO 2 /Fe 2 O 3 and pure TiO 2 under the visible light irradiation. The mechanism of the improved photocatalytic activity over CQDs/TiO 2 /Fe 2 O 3 were also investigated. The CQDs can better capture and transfer photogenerated electrons through the Ti-O-C and Fe-O-C bonds. What's more, CQDs can improve the utilization of photogenerated electrons and the electrons in CQDs are captured by O 2 to produce •O 2 - radicals and the role of •O 2 - radicals in the photocatalytic process is significantly improved.

Background This study aimed to develop a set of perfect simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers with a single copy in the cotton genome, to construct a DNA fingerprint database suitable for authentication of cotton cultivars. We optimized the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) system for multi-platform compatibility and improving detection efficiency. Based on the reference genome of upland cotton and 10× resequencing data of 48 basic cotton germplasm lines, single-copy polymorphic SSR sites were identified and developed as diploidization SSR markers. The SSR markers were detected by denaturing polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE) for initial screening, then fluorescence capillary electrophoresis for secondary screening. The final perfect SSR markers were evaluated and verified using 210 lines from different sources among Chinese cotton regional trials. Results Using bioinformatics techniques, 1 246 SSR markers were designed from 26 626 single-copy SSR loci. Adopting a stepwise (primary and secondary) screening strategy, a set of 60 perfect SSR markers was selected with high amplification efficiency and stability, easy interpretation of peak type, multiple allelic variations, high polymorphism information content (PIC) value, uniform chromosome distribution, and single-copy characteristics. A multiplex PCR system was established with ten SSR markers using capillary electrophoresis detection. Conclusions A set of perfect SSR markers of cotton was developed and a high-throughput SSR marker detection system was established. This study lays a foundation for large-scale and standardized construction of a cotton DNA fingerprint database for authentication of cotton varieties.

In non-haemodialysis (HD) patients, increased epicardial adipose tissue (EAT) thickness was significantly associated with adverse cardiovascular (CV) events. This study was designed to investigate whether EAT thickness was a useful parameter in the prediction of adverse CV events in HD patients. In addition, we also evaluated the major correlates of EAT thickness in these patients. In 189 routine HD patients, we performed a comprehensive transthoracic echocardiographic examination with assessment of EAT thickness. The definition of CV events included CV death, non-fatal stroke, non-fatal myocardial infarction, peripheral artery disease, and hospitalization for heart failure. The follow-up period for CV events was 2.5 ± 0.7 years. Thirty-one CV events were documented. The multivariable analysis demonstrated that older age, smoking status, the presence of diabetes mellitus and coronary artery disease, and low albumin levels were independently correlated with adverse CV events. However, increased EAT thickness was not associated with adverse CV events (P = 0.631). Additionally, older age, female sex, low haemoglobin, and low early diastolic mitral annular velocity were correlated with high EAT thickness in the univariable analysis. In the multivariable analysis, older age and female sex were still correlated with high EAT thickness. In conclusion, high EAT thickness was associated with older age and female sex in the multivariable analysis in our HD patients. However, EAT thickness was not helpful in predicting adverse CV events in such patients. Further large-scale studies are necessary to verify this finding.

This paper proposes a sustainable and facile approach for the synthesis of photocatalysts in which shell waste is used as support material. The synthesized photocatalysts exhibited a significant performance in the mineralization of organic substances under solar irradiation or artificial lighting. Calcined abalone shell with a TiO

A large interarm and interleg systolic blood pressure (SBP) difference and ankle-brachial index (ABI) 10 mm Hg, and interleg SBP difference >15 mm Hg (P ≤ .030) were associated with increased 4-limb SBP SD. Additionally, a subgroup multivariable linear regression analysis in 1020 patients without ABI 10 mm Hg, and interleg SBP difference >15 mm Hg found 4-limb SBP SD still had a positive correlation with LVMI (P 10 mm Hg, and interleg SBP difference >15 mm Hg, 4-limb SBP SD was positively correlated with LVMI in the multivariable linear regression analysis in all study patients. Furthermore, in the subgroup of patients without clinical evidence of peripheral artery disease, 4-limb SBP SD still had a positive correlation with LVMI. Hence, assessment of 4-limb SBP heterogeneity is useful in identification of high-risk group of peripheral artery disease and/or increased LVMI, irrespective of the presence of overt peripheral artery disease.

Low ankle-brachial index (ABI) calculated using systolic blood pressure (SBP) is associated with poor prognosis. However, there is no study assessing ABI calculated using mean artery pressure (MAP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) in predicting mortality.Two cohort populations were enrolled. The first population comprised 379 patients (106 patients with angiography-proved peripheral artery disease (PAD) and 273 relative normal patients) to evaluate the best cutoff values of ABImbp and ABIdbp for prediction of PAD. The second population included 941 patients undergoing echocardiographic examinations to assess the ability of different ABIs in predicting mortality. ABIs were measured using an ABI-form device.The best cutoff values of ABImbp and ABIdbp for prediction of PAD were 0.92 and 0.88. In our second population, median follow-up to mortality was 93 months. There were 87 cardiovascular and 228 overall deaths. Multivariable analysis showed ABIsbp, ABImap, ABIdbp, ABIsbp0.9, and ABImap0.92 could predict overall and cardiovascular mortality (all p 0.001). ABIdbp0.88 could only predict CV mortality (p = 0.033). In a direct comparison of 6 multivariable models, the basic model consisting of significant variables in the univariable analysis plus ABImap0.92 had the highest predictive value for overall and cardiovascular mortality (all p 0.001).In a direct comparison of 6 multivariable models, the basic model + ABImap 0.92 was the best model in predicting overall and cardiovascular mortality. Hence, calculation of ABI using MAP except SBP might provide extra benefit in survival prediction.

Pulse volume recording is an accurate modality for detecting arterial occlusion in the lower extremities. There are two indexes of pulse volume recording measured at ankle, percentage of mean arterial pressure (%MAP) and upstroke time (UT). The aim of the study was to examine the ability of %MAP and UT for the prediction of overall and cardiovascular mortality in hemodialysis (HD) patients. In 197 routine HD patients, ankle %MAP, ankle UT, and ankle&ndash, brachial index (ABI) were automatically measured by Colin VP-1000 instrument. Fourteen cardiovascular mortality and 29 overall mortalities were documented during 2.7 &plusmn, 0.6 years follow-up. In the univariate analysis, in addition to co-morbidities and traditional clinical parameters, increased total mortality was associated with decreased ABI, ABI &lt, 0.9, increased %MAP and UT, %MAP &gt, 50%, and UT &gt, 169 ms (p &lt, 0.041) and increased cardiovascular mortality was associated with increased UT and %MAP &gt, 50% (p &lt, 0.022). After multivariate analysis, increased %MAP and %MAP &gt, 0.047) were still the predictors of total mortality and %MAP &gt, 50% (p = 0.024) was still the predictor of cardiovascular mortality. In HD patients, we found that ankle %MAP and %MAP &gt, 50% could predict total mortality and ankle %MAP &gt, 50% could predict cardiovascular mortality in the multivariate analysis. Hence, assessment of %MAP from pulse volume recording at ankle might be helpful in identifying the high-risk group for poor prognosis in HD patients.

Cotton carbon aerogel was prepared and used as a new water-insoluble adsorbent to remove strontium from aqueous solution. A comprehensive study on adsorption of strontium by cotton carbon aerogel was conducted regarding the effects of initial pH, temperature, initial strontium concentration, and contact time. The adsorbent was characterized by SEM. The results of regression analysis indicated that the adsorption process largely depends on the pH and temperature. The optimum pH range for adsorption process is 5–7. The maximum removal efficiency of strontium from aqueous solution was 60.16%. Moreover, cotton carbon aerogel adsorbent has good reusability before the fifth reuse.

Traditional Eu3+-activated inorganic phosphors are habitually used for general lighting and display because they generally emit either intense orange (5D0-7F1) or red (5D0-7F2) light whose wavelength is shorter than 630 nm. However, less known nor focused is that Eu3+ at sites with specific symmetry can intensify its 5D0-7F4 transition, enabling Eu3+ itself to emit deep red light (>700 nm) even stronger than the above orange and red ones. Herein, a novel Eu3+-activated phosphor, Ca2TbSn2Al3O12:Eu3+, is developed from the garnet structure. Differing from other Eu3+-activated phosphors, the 5D0-7F4 transition of Eu3+ in the host is dominant and the orange, red and deep red emissions are balanced. Such special features of Eu3+ luminescence mainly meet the need of phytochromes (PFR and PR) in plants. Additionally, bridge style energy transfer from the host composition element Tb3+ to the activator Eu3+ can be observed. It is found the Tb3+-Eu3+ energy transfer here takes through the mechanism of dipole-dipole interaction and the simulation on decay curve of Eu3+ upon Tb3+ excitation, for the first time, confirms the existence of terbium bridge energy transfer. For the Ca2Tb0.60Sn2Al3O12:0.40Eu3+, the energy transfer efficiency is as high as 94.4% and the emission color is totally red. Thermal quenching studies reveal that the emission intensity of the phosphor at 425 K sustains 80% of its initial intensity at room temperature. By fabricating the phosphor with a 380 nm LED chip, a plant-growth LED device can be obtained.

Background The Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program (HRRP) penalizes hospitals for higher-than-expected readmission rates. Almost 20% of Medicare fee-for-service (FFS) patients receive postacute care in skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) after hospitalization. SNF patients have high readmission rates. Objective The objective of this study was to investigate the association between changes in hospital referral patterns to SNFs and HRRP penalty pressure. Design We examined changes in the relationship between penalty pressure and outcomes before versus after HRRP announcement among 2698 hospitals serving 6,936,393 Medicare FFS patients admitted for target conditions: acute myocardial infarction, heart failure, or pneumonia. Hospital-level penalty pressure was the expected penalty rate in the first year of the HRRP multiplied by Medicare discharge share. Outcomes Informal integration measured by the percentage of referrals to hospitals' most referred SNF; formal integration measured by SNF acquisition; readmission-based quality index of the SNFs to which a hospital referred discharged patients; referral rate to any SNF. Results Hospitals facing the median level of penalty pressure had modest differential increases of 0.3 percentage points in the proportion of referrals to the most referred SNF and a 0.006 SD increase in the average quality index of SNFs referred to. There were no statistically significant differential increases in formal acquisition of SNFs or referral rate to SNF. Conclusions HRRP did not prompt substantial changes in hospital referral patterns to SNFs, although readmissions for patients referred to SNF differentially decreased more than for other patients, warranting investigation of other mechanisms underlying readmissions reduction.

Objective To propose and evaluate a metric for quantifying hospital-specific disparities in health outcomes that can be used by patients and hospitals. Data sources/study setting Inpatient admissions for Medicare patients with acute myocardial infarction, heart failure, or pneumonia to all non-federal, short-term, acute care hospitals during 2012-2015. Study design Building on the current Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services methodology for calculating risk-standardized readmission rates, we developed models that include a hospital-specific random coefficient for either patient dual eligibility status or African American race. These coefficients quantify the difference in risk-standardized outcomes by dual eligibility and race at a given hospital after accounting for the hospital's patient case mix and proportion of dual eligible or African American patients. We demonstrate this approach and report variation and performance in hospital-specific disparities. Principal findings Dual eligibility and African American race were associated with higher readmission rates within hospitals for all three conditions. However, this disparity effect varied substantially across hospitals. Conclusion Our models isolate a hospital-specific disparity effect and demonstrate variation in quality of care for different groups of patients across conditions and hospitals. Illuminating within-hospital disparities can incentivize hospitals to reduce inequities in health care quality.

Plant variety identification has profound meanings to ensure seed quality and food safety. DNA fingerprinting has its advantage in plant variety identification, and has transformed from indirect evidence into a mainstream method. A method for DNA fingerprinting called core loci combination was summarized in this study, which utilized a set of fixed core loci combination to identify different varieties. Since 2003, the project has been constantly improved and expanded. The first was to form combination of expanded loci by increasing the quantity of core loci to cope with increasing demand of variety identification of derived varieties. The second was to further decompose the core loci into group specific loci which played the function of fast and accurate clustering and species-specific loci which had stronger variety identification function. The third was to further propose the core loci combination of polyploidy crops based on the mature experience of diploid crop, which are diploidized single marker method and combination marker method. From the trend of future development, the rapid development of new technologies such as sequencing technology and gene editing technology will largely promote the improvement of DNA fingerprinting and improve the application effect in practice. This article has systematically elaborated the concept and characteristics of variety identification, summarized major types and identification methods of DNA fingerprinting, extracted technical methods for variety DNA fingerprinting and finally out-looked the future trend of DNA fingerprinting development. It is hoped that the study could provide guidances for the development of DNA fingerprinting standard of each crops, and the application of molecular technology in the structure and variety identification of DNA fingerprinting database.