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We used a 30-day daily diary assessment method to examine the within-person associations between social rejection, emotional experiences, and emotion regulation strategies in a sample of 34 college students. Taking emotional experience as the dependent variable, we explored and analyzed cumulative and hysteresis effects using a random regression coefficient model. The results showed that situations of social rejection tended to induce negative emotional experiences, for which college students mostly adopted attention transfer strategies. In contrast, positive emotional experience increased in situations of social acceptance, and college students mostly adopted cognitive reappraisal strategies in this setting. Further, cognitive reappraisal strategies had time accumulation and overlapping effects on individual positive emotional experiences, and attention transfer strategies had a lag effect on individual emotional experiences. These findings advance understanding of the negative affect–emotion regulation association among individuals exposed to social rejection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although, in theory, the conscientiousness of college students should reduce their aggressive behavior, the basic process underlying this relationship remains unknown. This study investigated the relationship between the conscientiousness of college students and their cyber aggression, the mediating effect of online moral anger, and the moderating effect of gender. Participants were 92 college students, who completed a survey questionnaire about their conscientiousness, cyber aggression, and online moral anger. The results showed that conscientiousness negatively predicted the cyber aggression of college students. Further, online moral anger partially mediated the link between conscientiousness and cyber aggression, and the mediating effect of conscientiousness on cyber aggression was moderated by gender, with the effect only observed in male students. The results indicate that the conscientiousness of college students can reduce cyber aggression, and male college students can reduce cyber aggression through appropriately displaying enhanced moral anger. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the development of molecular sequencing approaches, many taxonomic and phylogenetic problems of the genus Allium L. have been solved; however, the phylogenetic relationships of some subgenera or sections, such as section Bromatorrhiza, remain unresolved, which has greatly impeded our full understanding of the species relationships among the major clades of Allium. In this study, the complete chloroplast (cp) genomes of nine species in the Allium sect. Bromatorrhiza were determined using the Illumina paired-end sequencing, the NOVOPlasty de novo assembly strategy, and the PGA annotation method. The results showed that the cp genome exhibited high conservation and revealed a typical circular tetrad structure. Among the sect. Bromatorrhiza species, the gene content, SSRs, codon usage, and RNA editing site were similar. The genome structure and IR regions' fluctuation were investigated while genes, CDSs, and non-coding regions were extracted for phylogeny reconstruction. Evolutionary rates (Ka/Ks values) were calculated, and positive selection analysis was further performed using the branch-site model. Five hypervariable regions were identified as candidate molecular markers for species authentication. A clear relationship among the sect. Bromatorrhiza species were detected based on concatenated genes and CDSs, respectively, which suggested that sect. Bromatorrhiza is monophyly. In addition, there were three genes with higher Ka/Ks values (rps2, ycf1, and ycf2), and four genes (rpoC2, atpF, atpI, and rpl14) were further revealed to own positive selected sites. These results provide new insights into the plastome component, phylogeny, and evolution of Allium species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wind wave spectrum describes the quasi-periodic nature of the ocean surface oscillations and plays an indispensable role in the study of microwave electromagnetic scattering from sea surface. A reliable spectrum model suitable for radar cross section (RCS) predictions at different radar frequencies is desired. This paper evaluated the performances of five common spectrum models (i.e., Fung spectrum, Durden–Vesecky spectrum, Apel spectrum, Elfouhaily spectrum, and the newest version of Hwang spectrum, H18) on the normalized radar backscattering cross section (NRBCS) simulations based on advanced integral equation model (AIEM) at L-, C-, X-, and Ku-bands versus incidence angle, wind direction, and wind speed by comparing with the model and measured data for validation. These results indicate no single wave spectrum of them is satisfying for all the four radar frequencies, e.g., Apel and H18 spectra are better for L- and C-bands, Apel spectrum for X-band, and Elfouhaily and H18 spectra for Ku-band. Given this, three average composite spectrum models are constructed using different spectral models (i.e., all five spectra, Apel + Elfouhaily + H18, and Apel + H18) to simulate NRBCSs, similar to that of the individual spectrum model. It is concluded that the combination of Apel and H18 spectra overall performs best among the individual one and other composited spectra in like-polarized NRBCSs versus incidence angles, wind directions, and wind speeds, for wind speed greater than 30 m/s where the combination of the five spectra work well at Ku-band. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The sea surface essentially contains multiscale roughness with capillary waves of many sizes riding on large-scale waves that are also of many sizes. It is instructive to exploit the effect of radar frequency and observation geometry on the effective roughness scales responsible for radar backscattering so that the scattering mechanism and the scattering source can be better understood and quantitated. Based on common sea spectra and a theoretical scattering model, an attempt is made to attain the above objective. Model predictions, with selective roughness scales, are compared with wide validation data, including L-band radar observations, and predictions from C-band and Ku-band empirical models: geophysical model function (CMOD7) and NASA scatterometer (NSCAT-4) for C- and Ku-bands at different incident angles. Numerical results indicate that effective roughness scales for radar backscattering vary with radar frequency and incidence angle and are related to a portion of sea spectral components; the low limit of which is linearly proportional to the Bragg wavenumber determined by frequency and incidence angle, and the scale factor of the linear relationship is about 0.05. In addition, the root mean square (RMS) height and the correlation length of the effective roughness (i.e., scattering source) derived from the effective roughness decrease gradually as incident angle increases. In particular, the correlation length also linearly depends on the effective wavelength with a coefficient of 3.2. Moreover, these two coefficients are both independent of wind speed, radar frequency, and incident angle. These findings also reveal the essential properties of the spectral components contributing to radar backscattering and its variation with radar frequency and incident angle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, the bistatic radar scattering coefficients related to an oil-covered sea surface are predicted by modeling both the oil damping effect on surface roughness–through the advanced integral equation method–and the oil modification on the dielectric properties of the scattering surface. The bistatic scattering is analyzed in the whole upper scattering space under different radar frequencies, incidence angles, wind speeds, and oil thicknesses. Numerical predictions show that the scattering energy of an oil-covered sea surface is generally higher in the forward scattering zone than that in the backward one. In addition, the oil damping effect is the main mechanism ruling the scattering behavior in the backward region. The information related to the bistatic scattering geometry is also explored to retrieve oil thickness, representing one of the key parameters for radar-based marine oil pollution observation. A new index is proposed to quantify the sensitivity of bistatic scattering coefficients to oil thickness in different cases: single-polarization features, dual co-polarization features, namely, the polarization ratio (PR) and the normalized polarization difference index (NPDI), and dual-angular scattering features. Numerical results show that the bistatic scattering coefficients result in an enhanced sensitivity to oil thickness with respect to the monostatic case. The single HH-polarized scattering coefficients show better oil thickness sensitivity in the backward region, while the VV-polarized ones are more sensitive to oil thickness in the forward region. The combination of dual-polarized scattering coefficients significantly improves the oil thickness sensitivity compared to single-polarization radar observations, especially in the forward region. PR outperforms NPDI, even though the latter can suppress the effect of wind speed. The combination of dual-angular observations can significantly increase its sensitivity of oil thickness in the backward region but at the expense of reduced sensitivity in the forward region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• 4 chloroplast genomes of Curcuma were newly sequenced and assembled. • Multiple SSRs and highly variable regions were identified. • Curcuma has gene introgression with related taxa. • Chloroplast genes of Curcuma may had undergone positive selection pressure in evolution. Curcuma is an important member of Zingiberaceae. Many species of this genus are widely used in traditional medicine and have important cultural value in East Asia. Among them, C. longa is considered to be the main source of curcumin and has a very wide range of uses. The rapid development of molecular phylogeny has deepened our understanding of taxonomy and evolution of Curcuma. However, little is known about the chloroplast genome phylogeny and the genetic bases of adaptative evolution. In this work, we sequenced the complete chloroplast genome of 4 Curcuma species. Curcuma chloroplast genomes showed highly conserved structures and the length ranged from 159,423 bp to 152,723 bp. A total of 133 genes were observed. Multiple repeats and simple sequence repeats (SSRs) were detected. By comparing with related species, 7 highly variable regions were identified as potential specific DNA barcodes for species identification. Phylogenetic analysis of complete plastome sequences and specific data sets revealed discordance with expected genus boundary. Chloroplast phylogenetic relationships were better predicted by geography than by morphological and nuclear DNA, indicating a substantial existence of introgression. 9 genes were proved to have high posteriori probability in positive selection analysis, and 4 of them (psbA , psbD , PetA and rbcL) closely related to photosynthesis, implying that chloroplast genes may had undergone positive selection pressure in evolution. These results are of great significance for us to understand the genetic basis, phylogeny and adaptive evolution of Curcuma chloroplast. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to improve the gene-delivering efficiency of polyethylenimine-modified superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticle (PEI-SPION) and elucidate the related mechanisms, the binding ratio and protection actions of PEI-SPION to plasmid DNA (pDNA), the physical characteristics of PEI-SPION/pDNA complex, and effects of exogenous factors (including magnetic field, inhibitors, and activator) on gene transfection in human embryonic kidney 293T cells (HEK-293T cells) were explored here. The results showed that the diameter of PEI-SPION was about 45 nm. When PEI-SPION and pDNA encoding Oct 4 (pDNA-Oct 4) were mixed at the mass ratio of 1: 1, the hydrodynamic diameter (299.10 ± 5.01 nm) of conjugate complex was significantly smaller than that of complex at the mass ratio of 1: 2 (469.23 ± 28.86 nm; P < 0.05) or 1: 4 (593.67 ± 20.81 nm; P < 0.01); but its zeta potential was significantly higher than that of these latter two treatment groups, respectively (23.57 ± 0.84 mV vs 18.07 ± 1.03 mV, 14.7 ± 0.44 mV; P < 0.01); if the proportion of PEI-SPION to pDNA-Oct 4 was further adjusted to 1: 8 or 1: 16, the zeta potential of conjugate became negative. DNA binding test also indicated that the combining ability of PEI-SPION to pDNA-Oct 4 was close to saturation state when the mass ratio was 1: 4. The PEI-SPION-mediated transfection efficiency would be significantly enhanced under the auxiliary action of external magnetic field (280 mTesla) for 20 min (P < 0.01). No significantly difference in transfection efficiency was observed among chlorpromazine (CPZ) treatment groups and control group (P > 0.05), and similar results were found for treatments of nystatin. Compared with control group, 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2-DG) and amiloride could significantly decrease the transfection efficiency (P < 0.01), and only 0.3 ± 0.58% cells were successfully transfected with pDNA-Oct 4 in 10 mM 2-DG treatment group. One hundred nanomolar phorbol-12-myristate-13-acetate (PMA) could enhance the cell transfection of pDNA-Oct 4, and the transfection efficiency was increased up to 83.44 ± 2.16%. Therefore, PEI-SPION could efficiently concentrate pDNA-Oct 4 and protect them from the digestion of DNase I. The uptake of PEI-SPION/pDNA-Oct 4 by HEK-293T cell was an energy-consuming process, and the main pathway for this process was macropinocytosis. One hundred nanomolar PMA and external magnetic field could improve the PEI-SPION-mediated gene transfection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chicken embryonic stem cells (cESCs) isolated from the egg at the stage X hold great promise for cell therapy, tissue engineering, pharmaceutical, and biotechnological applications. They are considered to be pluripotent cells with the capacity to self-renewal and differentiate into specialized cells. However, long-term maintenance of cESCs cannot be realized now, which impedes the establishment of cESC line and limits their applications. Therefore, the separation locations, isolation methods, and culture conditions especially the supplements and action mechanisms of cytokines, including leukemia inhibitory factor, fibroblast growth factor, transforming growth factor beta, bone morphogenic protein, and activin for cESCs in vitro, have been reviewed here. These defined strategies will contribute to identify the key mechanism on the self-renewal of cESCs, facilitate to optimize system that supports the derivation and longtime maintenance of cESCs, establish the cESC line, and develop the biobank of genetic resources in chicken. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study is to investigate, by means of experimental measurements and full-wave simulations, the dominant factors for the very high-resolution (VHR) radar image speckles from exponentially correlated rough surfaces. A Ka-band radar system was used to collect the return signal from such a surface sample fabricated by 3D printing and that signal was further processed into images at different resolution scales, where the image samples were obtained by horizontally turning around the surface sample. To cross-validate the results and to further discuss the VHR speckle properties, full wave simulations by full 3D Finite Difference Time Domain (FDTD) method were conducted with 1600 realizations for the speckle analysis. At the considered very high resolution, speckle statistics show divergence from the fully developed Rayleigh distribution. The factors that impact on the high-resolution speckle properties from exponentially correlated rough surface, are analyzed in views of the equivalent number of scatterers theory and scattering scales, respectively. From the data results and extended discussions, it is evident that both of the above factors matter for VHR speckle of backscattering, from the exponentially correlated rough surface as a good representative for the ground surface. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lineage reprogramming has become a potential strategy for therapy of cardiac diseases. Somatic cells can be directly converted into the induced cardiomyocytes (iCMs) without passing through an induced pluripotent stem cell stage; this strategy has some advantages such as directional differentiation and preferable security. However, there are still many challenges which need to be further studied, such as identification of safer induced factors, exploration of molecular mechanisms, improvement of the mature level of iCMs and so on. Therefore, the structures of key factors, including transcription factors, microRNAs (miRNAs), epigenetic regulators and small molecules and their functions in the cardiac development and lineage reprogramming, molecular mechanisms underlying lineage conversion, strategies for generating matured iCMs, and major challenges were reviewed to lay the foundation for further applications of iCMs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]