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Internet of Things (IoT) systems generate a vast volume of data to process, and the volume of data generated by the IoT will continue to expand exponentially in the future. Due to the large-scale nature of such systems and their geographically distributed nature, how to optimally place operators and brokers for data processing across cloud, fog, and edge is the main concern of this paper. Furthermore, in the past, IoT systems relied on cloud-based brokers. If the communication between operators in an IoT application has to be regulated by a broker located in the cloud, the advantages brought by the processing of nodes located at the edge and the fog may be neglected. We consider various factors, such as the impact of different network topologies on operators and brokers, the needs of IoT application users, the performance of sensor layers, and the location characteristics of IoT sensors. In diverse placement strategies, the characteristics of the broker have been given special attention. This paper considers the combined architecture of the operator and broker on the edge, fog, and cloud as an optimization problem of minimizing computational processing and data transmission cost. We propose jointly placing the IoT application's operator and broker on the edge, fog, and cloud nodes. Then we proposed two algorithms: the low-complexity heuristic algorithm named GREEDY and the genetic algorithm called GA. Simulation results show that, in most situations, the GA placement method outperforms others and provides a near-optimal solution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Owing to their attractive optical and chiroptical properties, chiral metal halide perovskites have received increasing attention, with potential applications ranging from photonics and optoelectronics to spintronics. Metal halide perovskite nanocrystals with either intrinsic or extrinsic (e.g., chiral ligand‐induced) chirality have been reported recently, and the interplay between these two types of chirality has yet to be addressed. Herein, the inversion and tuning of excitonic optical activity is reported in intrinsically chiral perovskite nanoplatelets, originating from interactions between their structural chirality (due to the spontaneously formed screw dislocations in the crystalline lattice) and the surface enantiomeric (R/S) chiral ligands R/S‐phenylethylammonium bromide. Through post‐preparative exposure of the perovskite nanoplatelets to these R/S ligands of varied contents, either chiral ligand‐induced intrinsic chirality inversion or negative and positive Cotton effects induced by the ligands via electronic coupling between the ligand and the nanoplatelets are identified. These findings deepen understanding of the modulation of excitonic optical activity in chiral perovskites and can guide the rational design and synthesis of novel chiral materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Container virtualization technology represented by Docker has been widely used in the industry due to its advantages of lightweight, fast deployment, and easy portability. This paper considers the scenarios of AI-based IoT applications based on container technology in a cloud-edge collaborative environment, and proposes a container-based task scheduling algorithm. Using priority-aware greedy strategy, a new scheduling algorithm named PGT has been proposed which adopts the multi-criteria approach Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS). The containers in cloud servers and edge servers are managed in a uniform platform, and IoT application services are deployed in containers. The task with smaller deadline constraint is scheduled first due to its higher priority. Then, multiple indicators are considered comprehensively, such as task response time, energy consumption, task execution cost, to find the optimal container to execute task. Through varying the number of edge servers and the number of tasks, the simulation results in a cloud-edge collaborative environment indicate that the proposed scheduling approach outperforms the four baseline algorithms in improving QoS satisfaction rate, energy consumption, penalty cost and total violation time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary With the increasing popularity of cloud native and DevOps, container technology has become widely used in combination with microservices. However, deploying container‐based microservices in distributed edge‐cloud infrastructure requires complex selection strategies to ensure high‐quality service for users. Existing container orchestration tools lack flexibility in selecting the best deployment location based on user cost budgets and are insufficient in providing personalized deployment solutions. This paper proposes a genetic algorithm‐based Internet of Things (IoT) application deployment and selection strategy for personalized cost budgets. The application deployment problem is defined as an optimization problem that minimizes user service latency under cost constraints, which is an NP‐hard problem. The genetic algorithm is introduced to solve this problem effectively and improve deployment efficiency. Comparative results show that the proposed algorithm outperforms four baseline algorithms, including time‐greedy, cost‐greedy, random, and PSO, using real datasets and some synthetic datasets. The proposed algorithm provides personalized deployment solutions for edge‐cloud infrastructure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Glucosinolates (GSLs) are not only a unique flavor substance from leaf B. juncea but also a major secondary metabolite produced in response to abiotic stresses. Cold stress is one of the most common abiotic stresses in leaf B. juncea; however, the metabolic response pattern of GSLs in leaf B. juncea under cold stress has not yet been reported. In the present study, we analyzed the GSLs content of leaf B. juncea under cold stress and found that it increased and subsequently decreased. According to RNA-seq data, genes related to the synthesis of aliphatic GSLs were significantly upregulated following 24 h of cold stress; genes related to the synthesis of indole GSLs were significantly upregulated following 48 h of cold stress; and BjBGLU25 and BjBGLU27 were significantly upregulated. Further analysis of the correlation between transcription factors and GSLs content revealed that MYB, ERF, IQD, and bHLH may be involved in regulating the GSLs response pattern in leaf B. juncea under cold stress. In particular, an unreported transcription factor, BjMYBS3 (BjuVA05G33250), was found to play a possible role in the synthesis of aliphatic GSLs. And the external application of GSLs increased the ability of leaf B. juncea to cope with cold stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In mobile edge computing environment, due to resources constraints of edge devices, when user locations continue changing, the network will be delayed or interrupted, which affects the quality of user's service access. Previous studies have shown that deploying multiple microservice instances with the same function on multiple edge servers through container technology can solve this problem. However, how to choose the optimal microservice instance from multiple servers in a cloud-edge hybrid environment needs to be further investigated. This paper studies the selection of microservices problem based on the dynamic and heterogeneous characters of the cloud-edge collaborative environment, which is defined as a microservice selection and scheduling optimization problem (MSSP) to minimize users' service access delay. To cope with the complexity of cloud-edge collaborative environment and improve learning efficiency, MSSP is regarded as a Markov decision-making process, a Deep Deterministic Policy Gradient algorithm for microservice selection called MS_DDPG is then proposed to solve this problem, and the microservice selection strategy experience pool is established in MS_DDPG. Performance evaluations of MS_DDPG based on a real dataset and some synthetic dataset have been conducted, and the results show that MS_DDPG outperforms the other three baseline algorithms. In terms of average access delay, MS_DDPG is reduced by 23.82%. We also validate the performance of MS_DDPG by increasing the number of user requests, and the results also show that MS_DDPG obtains better performance in scalability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The burning-free bottom nozzle is a novel component for accurately controlling the molten steel flow during the casting steel process. The effect of the thermal mechanical behaviour of burning-free Al 2 O 3 –C bottom nozzle materials under extreme temperatures during casting on the thermally induced failure was investigated. First, the high-temperature dynamic Young's modulus and thermal expansion of the bottom nozzle materials were tested in the temperature range of 300–1473 K. A composite material constitutive model, a thermal conductive model and the concrete damage plasticity model (CDP) were adopted to examine the mechanical erosion behaviour of the Al 2 O 3 –C bottom nozzle in the casting process based on Finite Element Method (FEM). Results shown that the area near the core of the bottom nozzle was at a high temperature and under tensile stress conditions, whereas the edge area restricted by the external steel shell was mainly under compressive stress conditions. Then, the cracking tendency was evaluated, and an optimised bottom nozzle with a composite structure was proposed. The burning-free Al 2 O 3 –C bottom nozzle with a composite structure has an advantage in reducing the risks of cracking and extending the service life compared with the nozzle made of homogeneous materials. This work can make a significant contribution to the design of high performance bottom nozzles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the development of software technology, some complex mobile and Internet-of-Things (IoT) applications can be constituted by a set of microservices. At present, mobile edge computing (MEC) has been used for microservice provision to achieve faster response speed and less network pressure. Based on container technology, microservices can be easily deployed in the MEC environment, while multiple microservice instances in multiple locations need to be selected to provide services for a large number of users geographically distributed. How to fully consider the service response time, scheduling the startup and running strategies of microservice instances with the least resource cost for multiple mobile edge servers is the core problem of microservice composition. In this paper, we propose a multi-objective evolutionary approach (MSCMOE) based on improved NSGA-III to minimize the service access delay and network resource consumption in the process of microservice composition. In order to maintain the diversity of the population, we use the improved reference point strategy to enhance the computational efficiency of seeking elite solutions in the non-dominated layer. Experimental results based on a real data set of Shanghai Telecom demonstrate that MSCMOE can effectively reduce network resource consumption while reducing service request time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A large variety of high-value substation relay protection equipment occupies a considerable amount of inventory space and capital in electric power companies. To improve this problem, this study proposes an inventory prediction model based on the remaining useful life (RUL) of equipment. The model acquires the RUL data of equipment by using the support vector regression (SVR) algorithm, and then, by taking this data as the main factor and the environmental factors and human factors during the operation of equipment as secondary factors, the model can realize the prediction of relay protection equipment in the substation. At the same time, the nature of the enterprise and the requirements for safety inventory are considered. The comparison of calculation results and error analysis, as well as the calculation time, all indicate that the RUL-based inventory forecasting is the best one. This model not only has high prediction accuracy but also has strong stability and portability. The model can provide a strong decision basis for improving the inventory management of the enterprise, enhancing the resource allocation capability, and formulating the spare parts procurement plan under the condition that the spare parts inventory reaches the safety stock. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a combined model is proposed to predict spare parts inventory in accordance with equipment characteristics and defect elimination records. Fourier series is employed to process the periodicity of the data, autoregressive moving average (ARMA) is used to deal with the linear autocorrelation of the data, and backpropagation (BP) neural network is used to settle the nonlinearity of the data. The prediction results, comparisons, and error analyses show that the combined model is accurate and meets the practical requirements. The combined model not only fully utilizes the information contained in the data but also provides a reasonable decision basis for the procurement of spare parts, making the inventory in a safe state and saving holding costs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Metamaterial absorbers (MMAs) offer a novel and flexible method to realize perfect absorption in specific frequencies, especially in the THz range. Despite the exotic abilities to manipulate light, most previously reported MMAs still suffer from limited bandwidth and tunability. Here we present a thermally switchable terahertz (THz) metasurface that exhibits ultra-broadband absorption and high-transmission characteristics at different ambient temperatures. Our simulations demonstrate that at room temperature the structure is highly transparent. When the ambient temperature reaches 358 K, the proposed design exhibits an ultra-broadband absorption from 0.398 to 1.356 THz with the absorptivity maintaining above 90% and the relative absorption bandwidth reaches up to 109.2%. The structure is demonstrated to be insensitive to the incident angle. Moreover, the bandwidth of such a structure can easily be expanded or reduced by cascading or removing the rings, providing high scalability in practical applications. Such a thermally switchable THz metasurface may have potential applications in various fields, such as optical switching, THz imaging, modulating and filtering. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Federated learning (FL) constitutes a potent machine learning paradigm extensively applied in edge computing for training models on vast datasets. However, the challenges of data imbalance, edge dynamics, and resource constraints in edge computing pose formidable obstacles to sustaining FL efficiency. In addressing these challenges and enhancing the effectiveness of training across heterogeneous devices in unpredictable communication networks, we introduce an asynchronous federated learning framework called AFL-HCS. Within the AFL-HCS framework, client updates transmitted to the parameter server are aggregated in each epoch based on their arrival sequence at the parameter server. Furthermore, the system incorporates a cloud cache structure to store client-submitted training progress for subsequent rounds of global model updates. This mechanism optimally leverages the local progress of clients, expediting the enhancement of the global model’s performance. Experimental results demonstrate that AFL-HCS has significant advantages over the original federated learning protocol. Specifically, AFL-HCS shortens the duration of federated rounds, accelerates the convergence of the global model, and improves the accuracy of the global model, even in unstable edge environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Web service composition has become a prevalent software development method that enables developing powerful Mashups by effectively combining Web services with different functions. However, as the number of Web services increases, it becomes challenging for developers to select appropriate services to develop Web applications that satisfy functional requirements. In order to recommend Web services considering user's preferences, a composition pattern-aware Web service recommendation method called EWACP-DeepFM is proposed, which combines the composition patterns between Web services and Mashups and the co-occurrence and popularity of Web services. By constructing a multi-dimensional feature matrix, which is further trained by the depth factorisation machine (DeepFM) model to learn potential link relationships between Web services and Mashup applications, and recommend Top-N best services for the target Mashup application. Experiments performed using the real datasets from ProgrammableWeb show that the proposed method outperforms others with better recommendation effectiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Building and urban railway construction are two typical high-risk types of construction in which unsafe behaviors have a considerable impact on the occurrence of accidents. To explore the patterns of unsafe behaviors and promote accident prevention, a comparative analysis is conducted to analyze the behavioral risk chains of accidents for these two construction types in the Chinese construction industry using complex network (CN) theory. First, accident cases are collected from government websites, and unsafe behaviors are extracted and classified according to a summary list of several safety standards and operating procedures. Second, behavioral risk chain networks of accidents (BRCNAs) for the two construction types are established as directed networks. Pajek, a program for visualizing and analyzing large networks, is then used to construct network models. Finally, the topological parameters of the BRCNAs are calculated and compared. The results show that BRCNAs are both scale-free and small-world networks. The characteristics of the building construction BRCNA are related to individual workers, and the characteristics of the urban railway construction BRCNA are related to the working environment and supervisors. However, there are certain unsafe behaviors that play an important role in accidents in both construction types. These findings reveal the variations in interactions among unsafe behaviors that cause accidents in the two construction types to further understand the patterns of unsafe behaviors. This study is of theoretical and practical significance for improving accident causation models and supporting on-site safety management in the construction industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rapid development of the Internet of Things and 5G networks have generated a large amount of data. By offloading computing tasks from mobile devices to edge servers with sufficient computing resources, network congestion and data transmission delays can be effectively reduced. The placement of edge server is the core of task offloading and is a multi-objective optimization problem with multiple resource constraints. Efficient placement approach can effectively meet the needs of mobile users to access services with low latency and high bandwidth. To this end, an optimization model of edge server placement has been established in this paper through minimizing both communication delay and load difference as the optimization goal. Then, an Edge Server placement based on meta-Heuristic alGorithM (ESH-GM) has been proposed to achieve multi-objective optimization. Firstly, the K-means algorithm is combined with the ant colony algorithm, and the pheromone feedback mechanism is introduced into the placement of edge servers by emulating the mechanism of ant colony sharing pheromone in the foraging process, and the ant colony algorithm is improved by setting the taboo table to improve the convergence speed of the algorithm. Then, the improved heuristic algorithm is used to solve the optimal placement of edge servers. Experimental results using Shanghai Telecom's real datasets show that the proposed ESH-GM achieves an optimal balance between low latency and load balancing, while guaranteeing quality of service, which outperforms several existing representative approaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nonnegative matrix factorization (NMF) has been introduced as an efficient way to reduce the complexity of data compression and its capability of extracting highly interpretable parts from data sets, and it has also been applied to various fields, such as recommendations, image analysis, and text clustering. However, as the size of the matrix increases, the processing speed of nonnegative matrix factorization is very slow. To solve this problem, this paper proposes a parallel algorithm based on GPU for NMF in Spark platform, which makes full use of the advantages of in-memory computation mode and GPU acceleration. The new GPU-accelerated NMF on Spark platform is evaluated in a 4-node Spark heterogeneous cluster using Google Compute Engine by configuring each node a NVIDIA K80 CUDA device, and experimental results indicate that it is competitive in terms of computational time against the existing solutions on a variety of matrix orders. Furthermore, a GPU-accelerated NMF-based parallel collaborative filtering (CF) algorithm is also proposed, utilizing the advantages of data dimensionality reduction and feature extraction of NMF, as well as the multicore parallel computing mode of CUDA. Using real MovieLens data sets, experimental results have shown that the parallelization of NMF-based collaborative filtering on Spark platform effectively outperforms traditional user-based and item-based CF with a higher processing speed and higher recommendation accuracy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Metal organic frameworks (MOFs) are considered as ideal templates for the synthesis of metal-heteroatom co-doped carbon materials. However, the tedious heteroatoms doping pathways hinders the maximizing of catalytic performances. Herein, we synthesize a series of high-efficient Co and N, P heteroatoms co-doped carbon-based composites by first constructing a novel in-situ P-doped MOF with novel larger N, P-containing ligands and 2-methylimidazole as mixed ligands, and then calcining these MOFs at high temperature. During the pyrolysis process, the generated gases derived from the thermal decomposition of organic ligands are liberated from inner of P-ZIF materials to make the Co–Co 2 P@NC-P catalysts become loose and porous. When being used as electrode materials, the optimal Co–Co 2 P@NC-P 3 -700 catalyst exhibits excellent ORR and OER activity, the ORR performance is superior to the Pt/C catalysts, and the OER performance can be comparable with the commercial RuO 2 catalyst. Moreover, when applied in the assembled primary Zn-air battery, the performances of Co–Co 2 P@NC-P 3 -700 catalyst can outperform the commercial Pt/C catalysts, exhibiting a high peak power density, specific capacity and a long-term stability. Furthermore, the catalytic active sites of catalysts are carefully investigated in this work. Image 1 • A novel N, P-containing larger ligand has been constructed. • A novel P-ZIF material is obtained with the novel ligands and 2-MeIm as linkers. • The optimal Co–Co 2 P@NC-P 3 -700 catalyst exhibits excellent ORR and OER activity. • Co–Co 2 P@NC-P exhibits better performance than Pt/C catalysts in the Zn-air battery. • Co–Co2P@NC-P catalyst exhibits a long-term stability and durability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to solve the problem of single arc plasma actuator's failure to suppress the boundary layer separation, the effectiveness of the array surface arc plasma actuator to enhance the excitation intensity is verified by experiment. In this study, an electrical parameter measurement system and high-speed schlieren technology were adopted to delve into the electrical, flow field, and excitation characteristics of the high-energy array surface arc plasma actuator under low ambient pressure. The high-energy array surface arc discharge released considerable heat rapidly; as a result, two characteristic structures were generated, i.e., the precursor shock wave and thermal deposition area. The duration increased with the increase in environmental pressure. The lower the pressure, the wider the thermal deposition area's influence range. The precursor shock wave exhibited a higher propagation speed at the initial phase of discharge; it tended to decay over time and finally remained at 340 m/s. The lower the environmental pressure, the higher the speed would be at the initial phase. High-energy array surface arc plasma actuator can be employed to achieve effective high-speed aircraft flow control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High thermal stability of all‐inorganic perovskite nanocrystals (NCs) offers their potential application in various fields such as solar cells and light‐emitting diodes. However, the cubic cesium lead iodide (α‐CsPbI3) with the most appropriate bandgap for light harvesting is thermodynamically unstable at room temperature and spontaneously transforms into the undesired orthorhombic δ‐CsPbI3. Here, a simple method is demonstrated to synthesize orthorhombic γ‐CsPbI3 NCs using 3‐aminopropyl triethoxysilane molecules as capping ligands. The crystalline structure and morphology of these γ‐CsPbI3 NCs hardly change after exposure to ethanol even though they are capped with fewer ligands. Their high stability is also demonstrated by retaining their photoluminescence (PL) intensity after heating/cooling cycles in the range of 295–375 K, in contrast to a quick destruction of α‐CsPbI3 NCs under the same condition. More importantly, temperature‐dependent PL spectra reveal that the exciton/electron–phonon coupling and exciton recombination process of these γ‐CsPbI3 NCs strongly depend on their particle sizes. This finding may enable versatile design of stable γ‐CsPbI3 NCs with different sizes meeting diverse demands for various applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We prepare a series of N -containing Cu-MOF@Co-MOF core-shell templates by employing two-step feed-in pathway and then step by step calcining these materials to obtain the N -doped carbon layers encapsulated Co–Cu alloy nanoparticles as efficient catalysts for enhanced oxygen reduction. The purpose of Cu-MOF designed as core materials is to increase the number of openly active sites when the templates are calcined at high temperature. During calcining, the Cu atoms facilitate the dispersion of Co on the surface of Co–Cu alloy nanoparticles, which efficiently avoid the agglomeration of Co during carbonization. When being used as cathode oxygen reduction catalysts, the optimal Co–Cu(3:1)@CN-900 material exhibits outstanding performance that can be comparable with the 20 wt% Pt/C catalysts, and the onset potential and half-wave potential of Co–Cu(3:1)@CN-900 is 60 mV and 37 mV higher than that of monometallic Co@CN-900 catalysts, respectively. Moreover, the active sites of Co–Cu(3:1)@CN-900 catalysts are also carefully investigated. Image 1 • A novel core-shell material has been constructed with two step feed-in method. • Co–Cu@CN-900 catalyst is obtained by step by step calcining the core-shell template. • The ORR performance can be comparable with Pt/C catalyst in alkaline. • The ORR performance much higher than its monometallic catalysts. • A facile and repeatable strategy to provide more openly active sites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dexmedetomidine (DEX) is a highly selective α2 adrenergic receptor (α2AR) agonist currently used in clinical settings. Because DEX has dose-dependent advantages of sedation, analgesia, antianxiety, inhibition of sympathetic nervous system activity, cardiovascular stabilization, and significant reduction of postoperative delirium and agitation, but does not produce respiratory depression and agitation, it is widely used in clinical anesthesia and ICU departments. In recent years, much clinical study and basic research has confirmed that DEX has a protective effect on a variety of organs, including the nervous system, heart, lungs, kidneys, liver, and small intestine. It acts by reducing the inflammatory response in these organs, activating antiapoptotic signaling pathways which protect cells from damage. Therefore, based on wide clinical application and safety, DEX may become a promising clinical multiorgan protection drug in the future. In this article, we review the physiological effects related to organ protection in α2AR agonists along with the organ-protective effects and mechanisms of DEX to understand their combined application value. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Acute kidney injury (AKI) is one of the most common and troublesome perioperative complications. Dexmedetomidine (DEX) is a potent α2-adrenoceptor (α2-AR) agonist with anti-inflammatory and renoprotective effects. In this study, a rat renal ischemia-reperfusion injury (IRI) model was induced. At 24 h after reperfusion, the IRI-induced damage and the renoprotection of DEX preconditioning were confirmed both biochemically and histologically. Changes in nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB), as well as its downstream anti-inflammatory factor A20 and proinflammatory factor tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), were detected. Atipamezole, a nonselective antagonist, was then added 5 min before the administration of DEX to further analyze DEX's effects on NF-κB, and another anti-inflammatory medicine, methylprednisolone, was used in comparison with DEX, to further analyze DEX's effects on NF-κB. Different concentrations of DEX (0 nM, 0.1 nM, 1 nM, 10 nM, 100 nM, 1 μM, and 10 μM) were applied to preincubated human renal tubular epithelial cell line (HK-2) cells in vitro. After anoxia and reoxygenation, the MTT (3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide) tetrazolium assay and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) were performed to evaluate the levels of NF-κB downstream anti-inflammatory cytokines. The results showed that, unlike methylprednisolone, DEX preconditioning led to a time-dependent biphasic change (first activation then inhibition) of NF-κB in the rat renal IRI models that were given 25 μg/kg i.p. It was accompanied by a similarly biphasic change of TNF-α and an early and persistent upregulation of A20. In vitro, DEX's cellular protection showed a concentration-dependent biphasic change which was protective within the range of 0 to 100 nM but became opposite when concentrations are greater than 1 μM. The changes in the A20 and NF-κB messenger RNA (mRNA) levels were consistent with the renoprotective ability of DEX. In other words, DEX preconditioning protected the rats from renal IRI via regulation biphasic change of NF-κB signaling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Perovskites—energy‐conversion materials with light‐absorbing and electronic transport properties—have shown excellent features for developing photovoltaic devices and novel light sources. It is an open challenge to extend the application of perovskites, such as to the field of ultrafast information coding. This work demonstrates a terahertz coding of optical polarization degree based on a metal halide perovskite nanostructure. Sub‐micrometer spheres of all‐inorganic CsPbBr3 perovskite are fabricated with high quality and stability. By employing this perovskite nanostructure, the ultrafast coding of degree of linear polarization (DLP) is achieved with a tunable bandwidth of up to 0.1 THz. Moreover, the DLP coding can be combined with the coding of another parameter, i.e., the shape of the lasing pulse, which improves the high‐bandwidth encoder from binary to ternary. The all‐photonic miniature encoder generates multiple‐parameter THz code sequences, stimulating the development of perovskite‐based microdevices for ultrafast information processing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rapid dissipation of accumulated heat and efficient electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding attract considerable attention due to the gradual integration and miniaturization of electronic devices. In an attempt to simultaneously overcome these issues, dual‐direction high thermal conductivity (TC) materials with outstanding electrical insulation and EMI shielding performance are urgently demanded. Herein, a tailor‐made sandwich network structure with insulated outer layer and EMI shielding middle layer is constructed by compression molding. The sandwich network structure endows the composite (#AB0.7/AM0.7/AB0.7) with high TC values of 3.051 and 3.365 Wm−1 K−1 at through‐plane and in‐plane directions, respectively, excellent electrical insulation (6.61 × 1013 Ω cm, 3.25 kV/mm) and superior EMI shielding performance (>27.68 dB from 8.2 to 12.4 GHz). All these results demonstrate that the prepared composite with tailor‐made sandwich network structure is a promising candidate as ideal thermal management material for electronic devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multiple ion beam facilities are powerful tools to simulate the irradiation effects of neutrons on relevant nuclear materials. Since hydrogen and helium are often generated in neutron irradiated materials as transmutation products and they play important roles in the defect evolution, the triple beam accelerator and transmission electron microscope link in situ facility instead of a monobeam or dual-beam facility is necessary to simulate neutron irradiation. A hydrogen-helium dual-beam ion implanter has been developed for a triple ion beam in situ facility at Xiamen University. A Penning ion source has been developed to produce H 2 + and He+ simultaneously. A special system consisting of two Wien filters and an Einzel lens has been proposed to purify the species from a single Penning source and allow for the measurement of the He+/ H 2 + ratio, without disturbing the accelerator settings. The detail of this dual-beam ion implanter will be introduced in detail. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rubidium lead halides (RbPbX3), an important class of all‐inorganic metal halide perovskites, are attracting increasing attention for photovoltaic applications. However, limited by its lower Goldschmidt tolerance factor t≈0.78, all‐inorganic RbPbBr3 has not been reported. Now, the crystal structure, X‐ray diffraction (XRD) pattern, and band structure of perovskite‐phase RbPbBr3 has now been investigated. Perovskite‐phase RbPbBr3 is unstable at room temperature and transforms to photoluminescence (PL)‐inactive non‐perovskite. The structural evolution and mechanism of the perovskite–non‐perovskite phase transition were clarified in RbPbBr3. Experimentally, perovskite‐phase RbPbBr3 was realized through a dual‐source chemical vapor deposition and annealing process. These perovskite‐phase microspheres showed strong PL emission at about 464 nm. This new perovskite can serve as a gain medium and microcavity to achieve broadband (475–540 nm) single‐mode lasing with a high Q of about 2100. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rubidium lead halides (RbPbX3), an important class of all‐inorganic metal halide perovskites, are attracting increasing attention for photovoltaic applications. However, limited by its lower Goldschmidt tolerance factor t≈0.78, all‐inorganic RbPbBr3 has not been reported. Now, the crystal structure, X‐ray diffraction (XRD) pattern, and band structure of perovskite‐phase RbPbBr3 has now been investigated. Perovskite‐phase RbPbBr3 is unstable at room temperature and transforms to photoluminescence (PL)‐inactive non‐perovskite. The structural evolution and mechanism of the perovskite–non‐perovskite phase transition were clarified in RbPbBr3. Experimentally, perovskite‐phase RbPbBr3 was realized through a dual‐source chemical vapor deposition and annealing process. These perovskite‐phase microspheres showed strong PL emission at about 464 nm. This new perovskite can serve as a gain medium and microcavity to achieve broadband (475–540 nm) single‐mode lasing with a high Q of about 2100. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rubidium lead halides (RbPbX3), an important class of all‐inorganic metal halide perovskites, are attracting increasing attention for photovoltaic applications. However, limited by its lower Goldschmidt tolerance factor t≈0.78, all‐inorganic RbPbBr3 has not been reported. Now, the crystal structure, X‐ray diffraction (XRD) pattern, and band structure of perovskite‐phase RbPbBr3 has now been investigated. Perovskite‐phase RbPbBr3 is unstable at room temperature and transforms to photoluminescence (PL)‐inactive non‐perovskite. The structural evolution and mechanism of the perovskite–non‐perovskite phase transition were clarified in RbPbBr3. Experimentally, perovskite‐phase RbPbBr3 was realized through a dual‐source chemical vapor deposition and annealing process. These perovskite‐phase microspheres showed strong PL emission at about 464 nm. This new perovskite can serve as a gain medium and microcavity to achieve broadband (475–540 nm) single‐mode lasing with a high Q of about 2100. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a major health issue, especially in patients with coexisting coronary artery disease (CAD). Patients with insulin-treated T2DM (ITDM) have worse outcomes than those with non-insulin-treated T2DM. Very few studies have compared short-term to long-term adverse cardiovascular outcomes following percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in patients on insulin therapy. Therefore, in this meta-analysis, we systematically compared short-term to long-term adverse cardiovascular outcomes in a population of patients with ITDM following PCI. Methods: We searched for English-language publications focusing on PCI in patients with ITDM using specific search terms/phrases. All the participants accepted for inclusion in this meta-analysis were treated with a drug-eluting stent. Post-intervention adverse cardiovascular outcomes observed during short-term and long-term follow-up periods were assessed and compared. Statistical analysis was carried out using the popular RevMan 5.3 software. Odd ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated. Results: Six studies comprising 1568 participants with ITDM in total were included in this simple meta-analysis. Patient enrollment periods varied but enrollment occurred during the years 1993–2012. When a fixed-effects statistical model was used, post-PCI adverse cardiovascular outcomes—such as major adverse cardiac events (MACEs) (OR 3.33, 95% CI 2.64–4.21; P = 0.00001), all-cause mortality (OR 5.73, 95% CI 3.37–9.73; P = 0.00001), myocardial infarction (MI) (OR 1.47, 95% CI 1.05–2.07; P = 0.02), and repeated revascularization (OR 4.78, 95% CI 3.29–6.94; P = 0.00001)—were found to be significantly more likely during the long-term follow-up period. A similar result was observed with a random-effects statistical model. Conclusion: Adverse cardiovascular outcomes post PCI were significantly more likely during the long-term follow-up period than during the short-term follow-up period in these patients with T2DM on insulin therapy. This hypothesis requires confirmation via new comparative trials that consider short-term and long-term follow-up periods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Aim: Recently alcohol septal ablation (ASA) has emerged as an alternative treatment for drug-refractory hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy (HOCM) and a subgroup of HOCM patients with previous ASA may need myectomy. However, subsequent outcome and mechanism of residual obstruction has not been determined. This study aims to determine outcome after myectomy and mechanism of residual obstruction in HOCM patients with previous ASA.Methods: From February 2009 to June 2017, 38 HOCM patients with previous ASA underwent surgical septal myectomy at our institution. Seventy-six patients who underwent surgical septal myectomy initially were included as the comparison group through one-to-two propensity score matching method.Results: Fourteen available cardiac magnetic resonance images revealed inferior location and small area of infarcted myocardium induced by ASA in 12 patients and outside targeted location in two patients. During follow-up (median, 2.4; maximum, 7.8 years), event-free survival at 7 years was 83.2% in the previous ASA group and 94.6% in the comparison group, respectively (P = 0.0378). Multivariable analysis indicated previous ASA (hazard ratio, 4.28; 95% confidence intervals [CI], 1.20-15.26; P = 0.025) and postoperative left ventricular end-diastolic diameter (hazard ratio, 1.14; 95% CI, 1.05-1.23; P = 0.002) were independent predictors of adverse events.Conclusions: This study demonstrated that uncontrollable extent and location of infarcted myocardium induced by ASA may attribute to residual obstruction after previous ASA, and the long-term event-free survival after myectomy was inferior. It may provide special precaution to patient selection and the increased number of ASA practiced worldwide. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Calcining pristine metal organic frameworks in an open system to synthesize N-doped carbon materials always lead to some drawbacks, such as relatively low graphitization degree and great loss of heteroatoms, and these factors greatly influenced the oxygen reduction performance of catalysts. In this work, a closed calcination method with three steps pathway has been developed to calcine the in-situ synthesized Co-MOF-GO/Urea composite to obtain the highly graphitized and high N content materials as enhanced oxygen reduction catalysts. During the pyrolysis process, the urea not only served as the additional N source, but also played the role of etching the pore structure by using the produced ammonia gas from polycondensation reaction. After careful adjustment the mass ratio of urea and graphene oxide, a Co-GO-C/N catalyst with high specific surface area, increased N content and abundant of pore structure has obtained. When being used for electrochemistry oxygen reduction reaction, the optimal Co-GO(50)-C/N(2.5) catalyst exhibits almost comparable oxygen reduction performance with the Pt/C in alkaline media, and the onset and half-wave potentials of which are 92 mV and 97 mV higher than that of pristine Co-MOF derived Co-GO(0)-C/N(0) catalyst. In addition, it also exhibits excellent methanol and ethanol tolerance and outstanding long-term durability. Image 1 • Co-GO(m)-C/N(n) was synthesized by using a closed calcination method. • Urea served as additional N source to increase the N atoms content of catalyst. • NH 3 derived from urea polycondensation could etch the pore structure of catalyst. • Co-GO(50)-C/N(2.5) possesses high graphitized and high N content characteristics. • The activity of Co-GO(50)-C/N(2.5)) is higher than that of MOFs derived catalyst. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An efficient Cu(ii)-catalyzed, C–H alkylation of BODIPY with a variety of alkyl diacyl peroxides has been developed for the first time, providing a late-stage and straightforward method for controllable synthesis of monoalkylated and dialkylated BODIPYs via a radical process that otherwise is difficult to obtain by literature methods. This chemo- and site-selective transformation will allow for the introduction of a variety of functionalities on the BODIPY core for highly versatile tethering to receptors and to other molecules of interest. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract This work investigated the biotoxicity and the residual dissolved organic matter (DOM) of the effluents from nine typical full-scale textile plants located at Pearl River Delta (PRD) in Guangdong province, China. The fluorescence regional integration (FRI) analysis showed that the tryptophan-like (II), soluble microbial product-like (IV) and fulvic acid-like substances (III) were the dominant compounds in the DOM. The acute toxicity test showed toxic effects still remained in most textile effluents, which might attribute to the undegraded dyes or aromatic compounds. Combining with the results from multiple methods, it indicated that the selected nine textile wastewater treatment plants (tWWTPs) all contained some residual micro organic pollutants in their effluents, and the residual benzene-derived products or aromatic amines were probably the toxicity-causing substances. Both ozonization and membrane filtration were capable of further decreasing the content of residual DOM, but by comprehensively considering the effects of removing DOM and biotoxicity, membrane filtration was better than ozonization. Graphical abstract Unlabelled Image Highlights • Residual DOMs are measured in the textile effluents and exhibited biotoxiticy. • Benzene-derived products and aromatic amines are the toxicity-causing substances. • Membrane filtration is more suitable for the detoxification of textile effluents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The mid-term outcome of patients with hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy (HOCM) undergoing coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) is unclear.Materials and Methods: We studied 44 patients with HOCM and coronary artery disease (CAD) who underwent septal myectomy and CABG) between 2011 and 2017. The control group was matched in a ratio of 4:1 based on age, sex, body mass index, hypertension, and chest pain.Results: Compared to patients without CAD, patients with CAD had a higher long-term cardiovascular mortality rate (0.6% vs 6.8%, P = 0.03; hazard ratio [HR] = 8.16, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.27-74.48, P = 0.03). In addition, 10 out of 176 (5.7%) patients without CAD and nine out of 44 (20.5%) patients with CAD achieved the secondary endpoints (progressive heart failure, unexplained syncope, stroke, atrial fibrillation, and myocardial infarction) (HR = 2.89, 95%CI: 1.03-8.12, P = 0.04). The 5-year survival rate and cardiovascular event-free survival rate were significantly higher in patients without CAD than in those with CAD (97.4% vs 93.9%, P = 0.03; 89.2% vs 80.1%; P = 0.04). In the multivariate analysis, presence of CAD, New York Heart Association class, and left atrial diameter were predictors of combined cardiovascular events when adjusted for age and male sex.Conclusions: The cardiovascular death and cardiovascular events are significantly increased in patients with HOCM and CAD who underwent CABG at the time of septal myectomy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Hepatic ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury is a pathological process that induces oxidative stress, hepatocyte apoptosis, autophagy, and increased inflammatory cytokines. The process can result in liver injury and dysfunction. Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are associated with the process of I/R; however, the underlying mechanism is not clear. The present study aimed to investigate the regulatory effect of lncRNA HOTAIR on autophagy during hepatic I/R injury. The expression levels of HOTAIR , LC3, and ATG7 were examined in a hepatic I/R model. We found that HOTAIR and ATG7 expression levels were upregulated and the autophagy level was significantly increased during I/R liver injury. In isolated hepatocytes, knockdown of the expression of HOTAIR attenuated autophagy induced by hydrogen peroxide. Using the bioinformatics database of TargetScan and starbase, we predicted microRNA miRNA-20b-5p might participate in the regulation between HOTAIR and ATG7. The miR-20b-5p level was significantly decreased in I/R livers and was identified to target ATG7 and inhibit its expression. In addition, HOTAIR can function as competing endogenous RNA for miR-20b-5p and attenuates its inhibitory effect on ATG7. Taken together, our findings revealed that HOTAIR regulates autophagy via the miR-20b-5p/ATG7 axis in hepatic I/R injury, which may serve as basis to develop novel therapeutic strategies to treat hepatic I/R injury. Highlights • HOTAIR and ATG7 expression were upregulated and the autophagy level was significantly increased during I/R liver injury. • In isolated hepatocytes, knockdown of HOTAIR attenuated autophagy induced by hydrogen peroxide. • HOTAIR can function as competing endogenous RNA for miR-20b-5p and attenuate its inhibitory effect on ATG7. • Our study revealed that HOTAIR regulates autophagy via the miR-20b-5p/ATG7 axis in hepatic I/R injury. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An efficient transition-metal-free regioselective C–H/S–H cross-coupling of BODIPY with thiols has been developed for the first time, providing a new and more straightforward method for controllable synthesis of mono-, di- and trithiolation BODIPYs via a radical process, which are otherwise difficult to obtain by literature methods. This new method will stimulate the synthesis of new and sophisticated thioether-decorated BODIPY dyes and will also easily allow the introduction of a variety of functionalities onto the BODIPY core through the thioether (pseudohalogen) functionalized BODIPY fluorophores. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Antiplatelet therapy is very important following percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). New generation P2Y12 inhibitors (ticagrelor and prasugrel) might potentially replace clopidogrel for the treatment of post-interventional acute coronary syndrome (ACS). In this analysis, we aimed to systematically compare the post-interventional clinical outcomes and bleeding events observed with ticagrelor versus prasugrel in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).Methods: EMBASE, MEDLINE, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and www.ClinicalTrials.gov were carefully searched for publications comparing the post-coronary interventional outcomes following ticagrelor versus prasugrel use in patients with T2DM. Adverse clinical outcomes and bleeding events were considered as the endpoints. Statistical analysis was carried out by the Revman software (version 5.3). Odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were used to represent the data during subgroup analysis.Results: A total of 2004 participants with T2DM were included in this analysis. Following PCI, mortality (OR 1.00, 95% CI 0.57-1.76; P = 0.99, I2 = 19%), myocardial infarction (OR 0.86, 95% CI 0.42-1.75; P = 0.67, I2 = 0%), major adverse cardiac events (OR 0.73, 95% CI 0.42-1.27; P = 0.27, I2 = 0%), and stroke (OR 0.72, 95% CI 0.20-2.59; P = 0.61, I2 = 0%) were not significantly different between ticagrelor and prasugrel. In addition, total bleeding events (OR 0.87, 95% CI 0.55-1.40; P = 0.58, I2 = 6%), Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction (TIMI) defined minor bleeding (OR 2.39, 95% CI 0.58-9.91; P = 0.23, I2 = 0%), TIMI defined major bleeding (OR 1.42, 95% CI 0.27-7.45; P = 0.68, I2 = 0%), bleeding defined according to the Bleeding Academic Research Consortium (BARC) major bleeding (OR 0.55, 95% CI 0.22-1.36; P = 0.20, I2 = 0%), BARC minor bleeding (OR 1.44, 95% CI 0.52-3.99; P = 0.48, I2 = 0%), and total minimal bleeding (OR 3.12, 95% CI 0.55-17.59; P = 0.20, I2 = 0%) were also not significantly different.Conclusion: Ticagrelor and prasugrel were not associated with significantly different adverse clinical outcomes and bleeding events in these patients with T2DM. Therefore, both antiplatelet agents might safely be used in patients with T2DM following coronary intervention. However, this head-to-head comparison still remains a major challenge which should be resolved in larger clinical trials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Let M4 be a closed minimal hypersurface in S5 with constant nonnegative scalar curvature. Denote by f3 the sum of the cubes of all principal curvatures, by g the number of distinct principal curvatures. It is proved that if both f3 and g are constant, then M4 is isoparametric. Moreover, the authors give all possible values for squared length of the second fundamental form of M4. This result provides another piece of supporting evidence to the Chern conjecture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present work revealed the heterogeneity of the sludge granules formed in a membrane bioreactor with enhanced internal circulation, and also contributed to better understanding of their forming mechanisms. By continuously carrying out an experiment lasting for more than 3 months with the floc sludge from a local municipal wastewater treatment plant as inoculation sludge, diverse aerobic sludge granules were found to be successfully self-cultivated within the reactor. The results of scanning electron microscopy, fluorescence microscope and high-throughput sequencing measurement indicated that the obtained diverse granules exhibited quite obvious heterogeneity in their basic physico-chemical and microbial properties, and filamentous bacteria actually acted as a main skeleton to keep the self-cultivated sludge granules stable in both their structure and morphology. Furthermore, stable and high COD and TN removal achieved, over 85% and 60%, respectively, which confirmed its usefulness in wastewater treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The nonlinear magnetization dynamics of an uniaxial anisotropy ferromagnet thin film under an external magnetic field is analytically studied. The celebrated Landau-Lifshitz equation depicts the magnetization dynamics of the anisotropy ferromagnetic thin film and the Maxwell’s equations govern the propagation dynamics of electromagnetic wave along the magnetic anisotropy axis. By means of a reductive perturbation approach, the dynamics equations of the system can be reduced as a modified Korteweg-de Vries equation, which exist a exact breather solution. We find that the excitations of magnetization of the ferromagnetic thin film and the magnetic induction and magnetic field of the electromagnetic wave can be governed by the breather mode. Our results show that the easy axis-component of the magnetization is a highly localized magnetized state in the form of the breather and the other-components of the magnetization are evolving like localized periodic loops when the breather mode is excited, which is very interesting. Up to now, few similar results have been reported. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work aimed at illustrating a crucial factor towards a sustainable municipal wastewater treatment process, namely, the membrane fouling caused by different statuses of biomass in the membrane bioreactors (MBRs) with no sludge discharge, and tried to explore the essential reasons leading to membrane fouling. By parallelly operating the MBRs with or without bio-carriers for 90 days under the same conditions, their operating characteristics and the accumulated membrane foulants were comparatively studied by using multi-methods. The results indicated that the added bio-carriers mitigated the membrane fouling, especially inhibited the formation of the reversible and the permanent resistance of membrane modules, and reduced the accumulation of foulants on membrane surface. When the trans-membrane pressure value of the bioreactor with bio-carriers reached 32.5 kPa for the first time, the trans-membrane pressure value of the bioreactor without bio-carriers had reached 32.5 kPa for the third time. The growing status of biomass was changed by the bio-carriers, which influenced the micro-habitat of microorganisms and varied the structure of microbial communities within the MBRs. The variation of the growing status of biomass is an essential reason leading to exhibiting differences in the membrane fouling of these MBRs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVES This study aims to assess the impact of morphological type on the prognosis of obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy patients who underwent myectomy. METHODS We recruited 469 obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy patients refractory to medicinal treatment who have undergone surgical myectomy at a nationwide referral centre. All patients were divided into 3 groups based on the morphological classification of left ventricular hypertrophy and were followed up by telephone every year. The primary end-points were sudden cardiac death, aborted sudden cardiac death and death due to heart failure or stroke. The secondary end-points were non-fatal cardiovascular events. RESULTS Typical hypertrophy limited to the basal septum, hypertrophy of the whole ventricular septum and hypertrophy that involved the whole left ventricle were presented in 248 (52.9%), 141 (30.1%) and 80 (17.0%) patients, respectively. During the follow-up of 2.5 ± 1.4 years after myectomy, 10 (2.1%) and 43 (9.2%) patients met the primary end-point and secondary end-points, respectively. The maximal thickness of the ventricular septum, the left ventricular mass and the presence of extensive late gadolinium enhancement were lower in patients with hypertrophy limited to the basal septum than in other patients. Patients with the basal septum hypertrophy showed better survival after myectomy compared with other patients. For the secondary and composite end-points, there was no significant difference between the 3 groups. CONCLUSIONS Patients with hypertrophy limited to the basal septum represented a special clinical subtype of obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy showing better clinical outcomes, while diffuse hypertrophy of the ventricular septum and free wall indicated lower survival after surgical myectomy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Graphical abstract Metal-organic framework (MOF) is a class of inorganic-organic hybrid material, which has been widely used in a variety of areas. In this review, we summarized the main applications and preparation strategies of MOFs-based catalysts in heterogeneous organocatalysis. Moreover, the applications of MOFs in photocatalysis and electrocatalysis frontiers have also been mentioned in the application prospects section. Finally, the main challenges of MOFs-based catalysts that should be conquered in future are briefly sketched in the final section. Abstract Metal-organic framework (MOF) is a class of inorganic-organic hybrid material assembled periodically with metal ions and organic ligands. MOFs have always been the focuses in a variety of frontier fields owing to the advantageous properties, such as large BET surface areas, tunable porosity and easy-functionalized surface structure. Among the various application areas, catalysis is one of the earliest application fields of MOFs-based materials and is one of the fastest-growing topics. In this review, the main roles of MOFs in heterogeneous organocatalysis have been systematically summarized, including used as support materials (or hosts), independent catalysts, and sacrificial templates. Moreover, the application prospects of MOFs in photocatalysis and electrocatalysis frontiers were also mentioned. Finally, the key issues that should be conquered in future were briefly sketched in the final parts of each item. We hope our perspectives could be beneficial for the readers to better understand these topics and issues, and could also provide a direction for the future exploration of some novel types of MOFs-based nanocatalysts with stable structures and functions for heterogeneous catalysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new ligand THPDP (THPDP = 11-(6,7,8,9-tetrahydrophenazin-2-yl)dipyrido[3,2- a :2′,3′- c ]phenazine) and its iridium(III) complex [Ir(ppy) 2 (THPDP)]PF 6 ( Ir-1 ) was synthesized and characterized by elemental analysis, IR, ESI-MS, 1 H NMR and 13 C NMR. The cytotoxicity in vitro of the complex against cancer cells B16, A549, Eca-109, SGC-7901, BEL-7402 and normal NIH 3T3 cell lines was evaluated using MTT method. The IC 50 values of the complex toward B16, A549 and Eca-109 cells are 1.0 ± 0.02, 1.4 ± 0.03 and 1.6 ± 0.06 μM, respectively. The apoptosis was investigated with AO/EB and DAPI staining methods. The complex shows strong ability to inhibit the cell growth in B16, A549 and Eca-109 cells. Ir-1 can induce apoptosis, increase the intracellular ROS level, and cause a decrease in the mitochondrial membrane potential. The intracellular Ca 2+ level and the release of cytochrome c were studied under a fluorescent microscope. The cell invasion and autophagy were also performed, and the cell cycle arrest was assayed by flow cytometry. The expression of Bcl-2 family proteins, PI3K, AKT, mTOR, P-mTOR was investigated by western blot. The results show that the complex induces apoptosis through ROS-mediated mitochondria dysfunction and inhibition of AKT/mTOR pathways. These findings are helpful for design and synthesis of iridium(III) complexes as potent anticancer drugs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Phosphatase and tensin homolog deleted on chromosome 10 (PTEN) plays a positive regulatory role on cell autophagy through inhibiting PI3K/AKT/mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling pathway. miR-155 plays a critical role in osteosarcoma occurrence and chemoresistance. Bioinformatics analysis revealed the targeted binding site between miR-155 and the 3'-UTR (untranslated region) of PTEN mRNA. This study investigated the role of miR-155 in regulating osteosarcoma cell autophagy, chemosensitivity to Adriamycin (ADM), and PTEN-PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway.Materials and Methods: Dual luciferase reporter gene assay confirmed the relationship between miR-155 and PTEN. MG-63 cells and drug-resistant MG-63/ADM cells were treated by ADM to compare miR-155, PTEN, p-AKT, p-mTOR, and Beclin-1 expressions. Cell apoptosis was tested by flow cytometry. MG-63/ADM cells were divided into five groups, including anti-miR-NC, anti-miR-155, pSicoR-blank, pSicoR-PTEN, and anti-miR-155+pSicoR-PTEN group.Results: miR-155 targeted suppressed PTEN expression. miR-155, p-AKT, and p-mTOR significantly increased, while PTEN and Beclin-1 obviously reduced in MG-63/ADM cells compared with MG-63 cells. ADM treatment markedly elevated miR-155, p-AKT, and p-mTOR expressions, whereas reduced PTEN level. Beclin-1 was slightly upregulated, and autophagy and apoptosis levels were low. Anti-miR-155 and/or pSicoR-PTEN significantly enhanced PTEN and Beclin-1 expressions, cell apoptosis, and autophagy induced by ADM and declined p-AKT and p-mTOR levels.Conclusions: miR-155 targeted suppressed PTEN expression, enhanced PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway, inhibited cell apoptosis and autophagy induced by ADM, and reduced sensitivity to ADM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) belongs to a group of mosquito-borne alphaviruses associated with acute and chronic arthropathy, with peripheral and limb joints most commonly affected. Using a mouse model of CHIKV infection and arthritic disease, we show that CHIKV replication and the ensuing foot arthropathy were dramatically reduced when mice were housed at 30°C, rather than the conventional 22°C. The effect was not associated with a detectable fever, but was dependent on type I interferon responses. Bioinformatics analyses of RNA-Seq data after injection of poly(I:C)/jetPEI suggested the unfolded protein response and certain type I interferon responses are promoted when feet are slightly warmer. The ambient temperature thus appears able profoundly to effect anti-viral activity in the periphery, with clear consequences for alphaviral replication and the ensuing arthropathy. These observations may provide an explanation for why alphaviral arthropathies are largely restricted to joints of the limbs and the extremities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work aims at establishing a coupling anaerobic-aerobic biofilm within a single bioreactor and revealing its microbial community and succession. By using a semi-suspended bio-carrier fabricated with 3D printing technique, an obvious DO gradient was gradually created within the biofilm, which demonstrated that a coupling anaerobic-aerobic biofilm was successfully established on the surface of bio-carriers. The results of metagenomic analysis revealed that the microbial community on the bio-carriers experienced a continuous succession in its structure and dominant species along with the operational time. The formed coupling biofilm created suitable micro multi-habitats for the co-existence of these microorganisms, including nitrifying and denitrifying bacteria, which were beneficial to the removing of organic pollutants and converting nutrients. Along with the succession, the microbial community was gradually dominated by several functional microorganisms. Overall, the results presented an approach to improve the microbial biodiversity by constructing a new structure and floating status of bio-carriers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present a theoretical study on Bloch oscillations in a helicoidal lattice with the first neighbor hopping and a selected N -th neighbor hopping. By the use of a simple variational approach, we analytically predict the occurrence of the anharmonic Bloch oscillation, which includes a specific high-order harmonic caused by the selected N -th neighbor hopping. In numerical simulations, we also observe such anharmonic Bloch oscillations. The variational predictions are indicated to be in excellent agreement with numerical results. In addition, our numerical results show that the wave packet width will perform anharmonic oscillations, whose periods and Bloch oscillations are equal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The presented investigation focused on exploring the characteristics of the biofilm formed on a novel semi-suspended bio-carrier and revealing their variation during the whole growing cycle. This used semi-suspended bio-carrier was designed to be a spindle shape, and then fabricated by using a 3D printing technique. Results indicated the bio-carrier provided a suitable environment for the attachment of diverse microorganisms. During the experimental period lasted for 45 days, the biofilm quickly attached on the surface of the bio-carrier and grew to maturity, but its characteristics, including the chemical compositions, adhesion force, surface roughness, structure of microbial communities, varied continuously along with the operational time, which greatly influenced the performance of the bioreactor. The shape and structure of bio-carrier, and the shearing force caused by the aeration are important factors that influence the microbial community and its structure, and also heavily affect the formation and growth of biofilm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]