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Underwater images suffer from low contrast and color distortion. In order to improve the quality of underwater images and reduce storage and computational resources, this paper proposes a lightweight model Rep-UWnet to enhance underwater images. The model consists of a fully connected convolutional network and three densely connected RepConv blocks in series, with the input images connected to the output of each block with a Skip connection. First, the original underwater image is subjected to feature extraction by the SimSPPF module and is processed through feature summation with the original one to be produced as the input image. Then, the first convolutional layer with a kernel size of 3 × 3, generates 64 feature maps, and the multi-scale hybrid convolutional attention module enhances the useful features by reweighting the features of different channels. Second, three RepConv blocks are connected to reduce the number of parameters in extracting features and increase the test speed. Finally, a convolutional layer with 3 kernels generates enhanced underwater images. Our method reduces the number of parameters from 2.7 M to 0.45 M (around 83% reduction) but outperforms state-of-the-art algorithms by extensive experiments. Furthermore, we demonstrate our Rep-UWnet effectively improves high-level vision tasks like edge detection and single image depth estimation. This method not only surpasses the contrast method in objective quality, but also significantly improves the contrast, colorimetry, and clarity of underwater images in subjective quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Crescent‐shaped hydrogel microparticles are shown to template uniform volume aqueous droplets upon simple mixing with aqueous and oil media for various bioassays. This emerging “lab on a particle” technique requires hydrogel particles with tunable material properties and dimensions. The crescent shape of the particles is attained by aqueous two‐phase separation of polymers followed by photopolymerization of the curable precursor. In this work, the phase separation of poly(ethylene glycol) diacrylate (PEGDA, Mw 700) and dextran (Mw 40 000) for tunable manufacturing of crescent‐shaped particles is investigated. The particles’ morphology is precisely tuned by following a phase diagram, varying the UV intensity, and adjusting the flow rates of various streams. The fabricated particles with variable dimensions encapsulate uniform aqueous droplets upon mixing with an oil phase. The particles are fluorescently labeled with red and blue emitting dyes at variable concentrations to produce six color‐coded particles. The blue fluorescent dye shows a moderate response to the pH change. The fluorescently labeled particles are able to tolerate an extremely acidic solution (pH 1) but disintegrate within an extremely basic solution (pH 14). The particle‐templated droplets are able to effectively retain the disintegrating particle and the fluorescent signal at pH 14. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fossils of Hamipterus tianshanensis (Wang et al. in Curr Biol 24:1323–1330, 2014) and their eggs have important scientific significance because they can provide unique information about the reproduction, development, and evolution of pterosaurs. The fossils and the rock surrounding them have, however, been weathered, which including powdering and flaking, since they were relocated from Xinjiang to Beijing. The high content of soluble salts is a significant factor in fossil deterioration because the dissolution–recrystallization process can generate tremendous pressure and lead to decreased mechanical strength. This study evaluated the electrokinetic desalination performance for the fossils, and two types of poultices employed including paper pulp from Bioline® and CKS121 (cellulose: kaolin: sand = 1:2:1, w/w). Mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), ion chromatography (IC), and other methods were applied to evaluate the desalination effect. The surface salt content reduction by applied direct current (DC) was about 70%, and the inner salt content reduction was about 80%. The experimental results suggest that the electrokinetic method is a promising way to desalinate fossils. Nonetheless, cracks appeared in the surrounding rock crack after electrokinetic desalination, which can be explained by the montmorillonite swelling-induced stresses. Pre-consolidation, especially for electro-chemical method may solve the cracking problem for the clay-rich sandstone desalination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Toxoplasmosis is one of the most common parasitic zoonoses in the world. It not only threatens human health and safety but also causes considerable losses to the global animal husbandry industry. Swine, as an intermediate host of Toxoplasma gondii, has important economic and public health significance, and the global prevalence of T. gondii in swine varies between 10% and 60%. Therefore, it is important to establish simple, effective, sensitive and specific diagnostic methods for the detection and prevention of T. gondii infection in swine. In the present study, we developed a colloidal gold immunochromatographic strip based on rTgROP14, recombinant protein A and monoclonal antibody TgROP14-5D5 for serological detection of T. gondii in swine populations. This new ICT achieved good specificity and sensitivity and has potential for routine serological detection of T. gondii in swine. Toxoplasma gondii, a worldwide distributed apicomplexan protozoan, can infect almost all warm-blooded animals and may cause toxoplasmosis. In order to provide a point-of-care detection method for T. gondii infection, an immunochromatographic test (ICT) was established. The proposed test uses recombinant T. gondii rhoptry protein 14 (ROP14) conjugated with 20 nm gold particles, recombinant protein A as the detection line and monoclonal antibody TgROP14-5D5 as the control line. The specificity, sensitivity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value and stability of this new ICT were evaluated. rTgROP14 was specifically recognized by positive serum of T. gondii but not negative serum. mAb TgROP14-5D5 showed higher specific recognition of T. gondii antigens and was therefore selected for subsequent colloidal gold strip construction. The new ICT based on TgROP14 exhibited good diagnostic performance with high specificity (86.9%) and sensitivity (90.9%) using IHA as a "reference standard". Among 436 field porcine sera, ICT and IHA detected 134 (30.7%) and 99 (22.7%) positive samples, respectively. The relative agreement was 87.8%. These data indicate that this new ICT based on TgROP14 is a suitable candidate for routine testing of T. gondii in the field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A series of x at% Gd3+: NaLa 0.975-x Nd 0.025 Gd x (WO 4) 2 mixed crystals were grown by means of the Czochralski method. The mixed crystals are formed by replacing La3+ ions in a part of NaLa(WO 4) 2 host with Gd3+ ions, and the first principle proves that doping Gd3+ improves the disorder and activity of NaLa(WO 4) 2 crystals. For NaLa 0.915 Nd 0.025 Gd 0.06 (WO 4) 2 mixed crystals, the physical and thermal properties were characterized by using structural refinement, infrared spectrum and thermal expansion coefficient. The results show that the grown crystal belongs to the space group Ι 4 1 / a with high phase purity, and has excellent thermal stability and anisotropy. Compared with NaLa 0.975 Nd 0.025 (WO 4) 2 single crystal, with the introduction of Gd3+, the local distortion electric field is generated, the original degenerate state of Nd3+ is changed, and the intensity of Nd3+ emission peak at 1062 nm and 1332 nm is increased by 2.34 and 1.89 times, respectively. The spectral bands of absorption and emission spectra are broadened by about 4 nm. The broadening of spectral band is discussed in detail by using the theory of uniform and non-uniform broadening. For uniform band broadening, the density functional theory is used to calculate the phonon state density and vibration mode of the mixed crystal, and the Raman spectrum proves that the spectral band broadening is caused by the introduction of Gd3+, which generates a new vibrational level and increases the electron-phonon coupling, thus widening the band. For the non-uniform broadening of the spectral band, combined with the variation of the dipole moment caused by the electric field distortion, the spectral band is proved. Finally, the J-O theoretical parameters, absorption and emission cross-sections of mixed crystals are calculated. The experimental results show that NaLa 0.915 Nd 0.025 Gd 0.06 (WO 4) 2 mixed crystals are excellent laser crystal materials, which can improve the utilization of laser pump light and improve the efficiency of laser. • A series of x at% Gd3+, NaLa 0.975-x Nd 0.025 Gd x (WO 4) 2 mixed crystals were grown by means of the Czochralski method. • Compared with NaLa 0.975 Nd 0.025 (WO 4) 2 single crystal, the emission intensity of Nd3+ is increased by 2.34 and 1.89 times • The spectral bands of absorption and emission spectra are broadened by about 4 nm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Li 2 CaGeO 4 and Er3+: Li 2 CaGeO 4 crystals were successfully grown by TSSG method. The electronic structure, vacancy defects, near-infrared luminescence, thermodynamic stability, and mechanical properties of the crystals were characterized and analyzed by first principles calculation and experimental tests. The results show that Li 2 CaGeO 4 and Er3+: Li 2 CaGeO 4 crystals are typical wide-gap direct bandgap crystals (3.64 and 3.96 eV). The effect of two cationic vacancy defects on crystal properties was studied. The results show that the defects of O2− or Li+ vacancy leads to the change of band structure, and the coupling degree between conduction band and valence band is reduced, and the degree of hybridization is reduced. The probability of non-radiative transition increases greatly and the luminescence intensity decreases. Spectral tests show that the Er3+: Li 2 CaGeO 4 crystal is an excellent laser crystal with a high near-infrared optical output at 1550 nm (4I 13/2 → 4I 15/2) and long fluorescence decay lifetime (5.804 ms). The thermal vibration and elastic constants of Er3+: Li 2 CaGeO 4 crystal are calculated by simulation. The results show that Er3+: Li 2 CaGeO 4 crystal is a kind of crystal material with easy processing, good brittleness, good thermal stability, and excellent thermal conductivity. Therefore, it has a very high application prospect in the field of laser or thermoelectric. • The Li 2 CaGeO 4 and Er3+: Li 2 CaGeO 4 crystals were successfully grown by TSSG. • Er3+: Li 2 CaGeO 4 crystal has a high optical output at near infrared 1.5 μm. • The O2− and Li+ vacancy defects were successfully calculated by DFT. • The ability of O defects to reduce transitions near the bandgap. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A natural amino acid-doped polyaniline nanostructure was prepared by a simple in situ chemical polymerization method in an aqueous medium. The structure and morphology of composite material were characterized by FESEM, TEM, FT-IR, and XRD. The results showed that the product possesses a large aspect ratio and a hollow tubular morphology. As-synthesized products were further applied to remove dyes and heavy metal ions from the aqueous solution, which exhibited good removal capacity toward Congo red (955.6 mg·g−1) and Cr(VI) (60.0 mg·g−1). The adsorption data for the former were found to be well described by the pseudo-first-order kinetic and Langmuir adsorption isotherm model. Thermodynamic studies show that the adsorption of Congo red by GluP is a spontaneous and endothermic process. Moreover, cyclic experiment results show that the polyaniline composites exhibited good recyclability. Therefore, these amino acid-doped polyaniline nanotubes can be expected to be an ideal candidate for the removal of organic dye and heavy metal ions from wastewater. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The carrier plays a critical role in dispersing the active species and enhancing their catalytic performances. Cordierite is one of the most widely adopted industrial catalyst carriers. This work investigated the possibility of increasing catalytic performance of MnCu-loaded cordierite by doping transition metals during cordierite production. In brief, Zn, Pb, Cu, Cr, Cd, and Ni were doped into cordierites before MnCu was loaded onto the cordierite. The obtained catalysts were compared in catalytic oxidization of toluene and various characterizations. As a result, Cu doping obviously created lattice distortion of the cordierite, which promoted preferential growth of (−202) facet in CuO phase and (111) facet in Cu 2 O phase after loading the active species. The preferential growth resulted in a bigger concentration of lattice oxygen as well as more balanced distributions of Cu+/Cu2+ and Mn3+/Mn4+. All these properties helped to decompose toluene by the lattice oxygen, which was subsequently replenished by gaseous O 2. Therefore, doping-free cordierite only reached a toluene removal of 35.2 % at 270 °C, while metal-doped one attained a removal close to 100 %. The main result of this work is in favor of producing a more effective industry catalyst carrier. [Display omitted] • Metal doping created lattice distortion of cordierite. • The distortion promoted preferential growth of crystal facet. • The preferential growth resulted in more lattice oxygens. • The preferential growth also resulted in balanced valence distributions. • Metal-doped cordierite thus showed better catalytic activity for toluene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chinese Semantic Role Labeling (SRL) is the core technology of semantic understanding. In the field of Chinese information processing, where statistical machine learning is still the mainstream, the traditional labeling methods rely heavily on the parsing degree of syntax and semantics of sentences. Therefore, the labeling precision is limited and cannot meet the current needs. This paper adopts the model based on a bidirectional long short-term memory network combined with the Conditional Random Field (Bi-LSTM-CRF). In the feature processing stage, pooling technology is combined with sampling and selecting multifeature vector groups to improve the performance of the sequence labeling model. Lexical, syntactic, and other multilevel linguistic features are integrated into the training to realize in-depth improvement of the original labeling model. Through several groups of experiments, the precision of model annotation in this paper has been significantly improved combined with linguistic-assisted analysis, which proves that it can optimize the annotation performance of the model by integrating relevant linguistic features into the model based on Bi-LSTM-CRF and sampling and extracting multifeature groups; the evaluation of F increases to 82.18 percent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous studies of ancient jade using portable X-ray fluorescence (pXRF) have mostly focused on mineral identification, alteration status and provenance determination. It is usually used as an auxiliary instrument for spectroscopic detection with finer resolution. However, there is no substitute for the efficiency and stability of pXRF in-situ non-destructive analysis, which is less affected by the test environment. The scale of the data from the pXRF analysis did not allow for a more in-depth interpretation of ancient jade in the past. In this study, pXRF has been carried out for a total of 112 pieces of nephrite artifacts unearthed from the Yuehe tomb No.1 in Nanyang City, Henan Province, Central China. Certain patterns become clearer as the size of the data increases. The coefficient of variation, cluster analysis and correlation analysis can be used to separate elements into different assemblages, revealing whether the elements are from the primary and impurity minerals of nephrite itself, from the burial microenvironment in the soil, or even from other specific sources. In addition, most of the secondary whitening occurring in the batch of nephrite are accompanied by an increase in Ca content, confirming the previously refuted theory of calcification. More importantly, the principal component analysis of the twin nephrite artifacts suggests visually indistinguishable elemental changes caused by secondary changes, which may lead to misjudgment of ancient nephrite provenance using elemental data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article proposed an analytical synthesis approach of generalized strongly coupled resonator triplet (GSCRT) filters, which eliminates the need for negative couplings regardless of the location of transmission zeros (TZs). The principle of removing negative couplings in GSCRTs is explained from circuit level for the first time. In contrast with conventional filter function synthesis with all in-band reflection zeros (RZs), some RZs are preassigned out of the passband, which are named redundant resonant modes (or even modes). By regulating the frequency of the redundant modes, flexible synthesis solutions can be achieved and the previously published strongly coupled resonator triplet (SCRT) becomes a special case of this new generalized version. Besides, a novel physical interpretation of GSCRT from the basis of modes is presented, which shows the modes routing clearly within the coupling matrix framework. Due to the proposed theories, additional approximation and optimization can be avoided during the synthesis procedure. Due to the redundant mode, all couplings in the GSCRT are positive, thus easing the design and manufacturing process. Also, GSCRT brings compact and in-line configuration of filters. Moreover, due to the higher flexibility provided by redundant resonant modes, reasonable synthesis solutions can be selected depending on the specifications or other physical limitations, such as bandwidth and size. A group of synthesis examples with simulations are elucidated. The simulated results show a good agreement with the synthesis theories. The simulated and measured results of an anti-interference C-band eight-pole filter with four TZs below the passband further validate the effectiveness of the proposed theories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electronic fetal heart rate (FHR) monitoring is a technical means to evaluate the state of the fetus in the uterus by monitoring FHR. The main purpose is to detect intrauterine hypoxia and take corresponding medical measures timely. Because the fetus sleeps quietly for up to 1 hour sometimes, ultrasound Doppler is not easy to continuously detect for a long time. The electronic fetal monitor obtains the fetal heart rate, which not only improves the accuracy and comfort, but also the convenient implementation of long-term monitoring. It is beneficial to reduce perinatal fetal morbidity and mortality. This study used maternal–fetal Holter monitor which is based on the technology of fetal electrocardiograph (FECG) to collect the FHR, and then design algorithm to extract the baseline FHR, acceleration, variation, sleep-wake cycle and nonlinear parameters. There were significant differences in the 22 parameters between the normal and the suspicious group. Using the 22 characteristic parameters, the support vector machine was used to classify the normal and the suspected group of fetuses. 80% of the data was used to train a classification model. The remaining 20% of the data was used as a test set and its accuracy reached 93.75%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The generalized Chebyshev (pseudoelliptical) filter functions may not be optimal for certain applications due to physical constrains. With redundancy in filter polynomials, this article breaks down the “mental barrier” in conventional synthesis and directly synthesizes the “Chebyshev-like” functions to achieve desired filter performance under physical limitations. By exploiting the redundant restrictions on exact equal-ripple response, the reflection zeros can be moved to the complex plane, thus forming the “Chebyshev-like functions.” A class of inline filters with a block of second-order dangling resonators is synthesized, which can generate a pair of symmetric transmission zeros (Tzs) but is considered unrealizable using standard Chebyshev functions. With the proposed theories, an accurate and much improved filter prototype is directly derived from the “Chebyshev-like” polynomials, avoiding additional optimization in the design process. For verification, a group of examples with synthesis results are elucidated. Eight ten-pole filters with four Tzs are synthesized and fabricated. The simulated and measured results demonstrate the effectiveness and application of the proposed theories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Serving is the most important hitting technique in tennis, and a good service receiving can instantly reverse the active and passive relationship between serve and receive on the tennis court, and control the rhythm of the court. The purpose of this study is to use an adaptive neuron fuzzy intelligent system to analyze some techniques of tennis serve. In this study, eight male players from the school tennis team were selected as the experimental subjects, whose sports level was above the national tennis level II. Ten weeks before the simulation test, the training time and frequency of 8 subjects were the same. In other words, 5 times a week, 2.5 hours±0.5 hours. The work engineering of adaptive fuzzy system firstly, in the off-line modeling stage, the adaptive fuzzy system uses the rule self splitting technology to generate the initial fuzzy rules, and uses the improved adaptive neural network algorithm to optimize the calculation; then according to the error between the system input and the predicted output, the independent variable is adjusted and replaced; at the same time, the adaptive fuzzy system is further used for calculation In the process of tennis serving, the nonlinear control variables are obtained online and applied to the fuzzy system for control. Next, in the experiment, the system was used to record the body’s movement and service scores during service. The experimental results show that during the service process, the maximum trunk torsion amplitude can reach 48.26 ° and the minimum is only 5.41 ° and the service score accounts for 81.41% and 80.47% of the total scores of the two sections respectively. This shows that the fuzzy system in this study can effectively analyze the service posture and score of athletes. It is concluded that the accurate calculation and analysis of tennis serve by adaptive neuron intelligent fuzzy system in this study is conducive to improve the tennis serviceability and competition performance of players. This research has made a certain contribution to the intellectualization of sports. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study successfully grew KBaY(MoO 4) 3 crystals doped with single Er3+ ions and co-doped with Ca2+/Er3+ ions using the top-seeded solution growth method. Thermal analysis of the KBaY(MoO 4) 3 crystals was performed by differential scanning calorimetry, and their phase and structure were characterized using X-ray diffraction and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The luminescent properties of the crystals in the visible and near-infrared wavelength ranges under different concentrations of Er3+ ions were analyzed through emission spectroscopy, and the concentration quenching mechanism was investigated in depth. The results showed that the strongest emission intensity was obtained at an Er3+ ion concentration of 5 mol%. Additionally, by substituting Ba2+ ions with Ca2+ ions, the emission intensity was significantly enhanced, especially when the Ca2+ ion doping concentration reached 6 mol%, resulting in the maximum emission intensity. Furthermore, we investigated the effects of matrix structure and lattice distortion on the spectral properties by employing Judd-Ofelt (J-O) theory and studying energy transfer mechanisms. The mechanisms of Ca2+-induced fluorescence quenching and factors influencing the fluorescence decay time were analyzed. Through the analysis of the absorption cross-section, emission cross-section, and gain cross-section of crystals with different Ca2+ ion concentrations, it was found that Ca2+, Er3+: KBYM crystals exhibited a low laser pump threshold. The results demonstrate that the 6 mol% Ca2+, 5 mol% Er3+: KBYM crystals possess excellent performance and are a promising laser gain medium. • A series of Er3+: KBYM and Ca2+, Er3+: KBaY(MoO 4) 3 crystals were successfully grown using the top seeded solution growth method. • The optimum doping concentration of Er3+ ions in KBaY(MoO 4) 3 crystal was investigated, and the energy transfer mechanism and fluorescence quenching mechanism of Er3+ ions were described in detail. • The doping of Ca2+ ions will reduce the symmetry of the local environment around Er3+ ions. • After doping with Ca2+ ions, the visible and near-infrared range emission intensity of Ca2+, Er3+: KBaY(MoO 4) 3 crystals has been greatly improved. • The absorption, emission and gain cross sections of Ca2+ doped crystals with different concentrations were calculated, and the potential of Ca2+, Er3+: KBYM crystals for laser output was evaluated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article proposes a novel approach for extracted pole (EP) filter synthesis. The pole producing elements can be extracted without introducing phase shifters. It is made possible by extracting lowpass elements in the prototype without reducing the order of filter functions. Using the proposed elements as added redundancy, the nonideal effect in the physical model is absorbed by adjacent resonators. Those novel approaches break through the conventional framework in EP filter synthesis. The synthesized results do not introduce extra spikes caused by nonideal phase shifters in the conventional EP filters. The new theory enables the application of EP filters in broadband situations. This work also reveals the equivalence between the frequency-dependent couplings and the PPEs. The validity of the demonstrated method is illustrated via an 11-pole filter with two transmission zeros. The simulated and measured results have no extra spikes caused by the nonideal phase shifters, which verified the effectivity of the proposed theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Paclitaxel nanoparticles are a compound with unique anticancer effects. Its mechanism of action is to prevent tumor rupture by stabilizing tumor proteins, while preventing cell division, leading to cell death, thereby inhibiting the spread of lung tumors. This article aims to study the treatment of lung tumors with paclitaxel nanoparticles assisted by tennis rehabilitation training. In this paper, paclitaxel nanoparticles were prepared by a solvent displacement method, and their particle size and morphology were measured. The TA2 series of experimental rats were selected to establish animal lung tumor models, and they were randomly divided into 5 groups: local injection of saline, porphyrin, and low-, medium-, and high-dose paclitaxel nanoparticles for treatment. The experimental results in this paper show that the average particle size of the paclitaxel nanoparticles prepared in the experiment is about 153,54 nm. Each treatment group inhibited tumor development to varying degrees. Among them, the inhibitory volume rate of paclitaxel nanoparticles in the middle- and high-dose groups was significantly higher than that in the paclitaxel treatment group, indicating that paclitaxel nanoparticles can release drugs slowly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gradient descent optimization of learning has become a paradigm for training deep convolutional neural networks (DCNN). However, utilizing other learning strategies in the training process of the DCNN has rarely been explored by the deep learning (DL) community. This serves as the motivation to introduce a non-iterative learning strategy to retrain neurons at the top dense or fully connected (FC) layers of DCNN, resulting in, higher performance. The proposed method exploits the Moore-Penrose Inverse to pull back the current residual error to each FC layer, generating well-generalized features. Further, the weights of each FC layers are recomputed according to the Moore-Penrose Inverse. We evaluate the proposed approach on six most widely accepted object recognition benchmark datasets: Scene-15, CIFAR-10, CIFAR-100, SUN-397, Places365, and ImageNet. The experimental results show that the proposed method obtains improvements over 30 state-of-the-art methods. Interestingly, it also indicates that any DCNN with the proposed method can provide better performance than the same network with its original Backpropagation (BP)-based training. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents a fully integrated 12-channel multiplexer with TE011 mode channel filters enabled by the unified extracted pole technique. A novel synthesis procedure is proposed to remove the limitation (a very small coupling) in the prototype with the classical approach. In addition, this article proposes a novel approach to assign the junction susceptance by simply shifting the length of the connecting waveguide section of the dangling resonators. The design process is then extended to the singly terminated case as the channel filter design. This work also proposes a novel analytical approach to derive the initial connecting phase lengths for the manifold multiplexer design. The circuit level optimization and space-mapping procedure for deriving physical dimensions are illustrated. The multiplexer is designed and constructed using a new clamshell structure, which offers low cost, small footprint, easy fabrication, and superior thermal performance. The simulated and measured results demonstrated that the proposed theory offers an excellent solution to the high-power waveguide manifold multiplexer designs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) is a common malignancy in endocrine system worldwide. Increasing evidence has shown that dysregulation of circular RNAs (circRNAs) could contribute to PTC tumorigenesis. The aims of this project are to investigate the potential role and molecular mechanism of hsa_circ_0039411 in PTC. In the project, RT‐qPCR was performed to measure the expression profile of hsa_circ_0039411 in PTC tissues and cells. Cell counting kit‐8, clonogenic, flow cytometric, and transwell experiments were used to identify the biological role of hsa_circ_0039411 on PTC cell progression. Bioinformatics methods, along with the dual‐luciferase reporter test, was used to identify the potential mechanism of hsa_circ_0039411. Hsa_circ_0039411 was identified as enhanced in PTC tissues/cells. Gain‐of‐function experiments indicated that hsa_circ_0039411 facilitated PTC cell growth, migration, and invasion and inhibited cell apoptosis. Knockdown of hsa_circ_0039411 caused the opposite effects mentioned above. The mechanism exploration showed that hsa_circ_0039411 functioned as a sponge for miR‐1179 and miR‐1205 to elevate ATP‐binding cassette transporter A9 (ABCA9) and metastasis‐associated 1 (MTA1) expression at the post‐transcriptional level, respectively. Further investigation confirmed that the functions of hsa_circ_0039411 are dependent on its modulation of ABCA9 and MTA1 in PTC cells. This study uncovered a mechanism of hsa_circ_0039411 in PTC, which might act as a novel therapeutic target for PTC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article studied the interference between two channels of a tunable diplexer and proposed a feasible solution to alleviate the effect. A novel approach to synthesize the channel filter with the first element replicating the other channel’s effect is first developed. It led a set of simple formulae for fixed frequency diplexer design. After that, a framework incorporating a redundant coupling path to generate cancellation effect is derived using the coupling matrix theory. The proposed theories are demonstrated and verified using a combline diplexer design. The simulated and measured results suggest that the interference of the two channels can be greatly mitigated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Optical interference is known to alter the intensity of Raman scattering signals. Its effect on enhanced Raman scattering from embedded indium tin oxide (ITO) nano-island arrays prepared by pulsed laser deposition of ITO films with different thicknesses on Si templates with nano-scale roughness are studied. Optical self-interference of the incident, scattered, and emitted light is observed to modulate the intensity and shape of the Raman signals as well as fluorescence background. The fluctuations in the Raman signals and fluorescence background can be explained by a theoretical model considering multiple reflections at the surface and interface. This interference effect must be taken into account in the investigation of enhanced Raman scattering from ITO. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Limited data exist regarding risk factors for aortic stenosis (AS). The plasma proteome is a promising phenotype for discovery of novel biomarkers and potentially causative mechanisms. The aim of this study was to discover novel biomarkers with potentially causal associations with AS. We measured 4,877 plasma proteins (SomaScan aptamer-affinity assay) among ARIC (Atherosclerosis Risk In Communities) study participants in mid-life (visit 3 [V3]; n = 11,430; age 60 ± 6 years) and in late-life (V5; n = 4,899; age 76 ± 5 years). We identified proteins cross-sectionally associated with aortic valve (AV) peak velocity (AVmax) and dimensionless index by echocardiography at V5 and with incident AV-related hospitalization after V3 with the use of multivariable linear and Cox proportional hazard regression. We assessed associations of candidate proteins with changes in AVmax over 6 years and with AV calcification with the use of cardiac computed tomography, replicated analysis in an independent sample, performed Mendelian randomization, and evaluated gene expression in explanted human AV tissue. Fifty-two proteins cross-sectionally were associated with AVmax and dimensionless index at V5 and with risk of incident AV-related hospitalization after V3. Among 3,413 participants in the Cardiovascular Health Study, 6 of those proteins were significantly associated with adjudicated moderate or severe AS, including matrix metalloproteinase 12 (MMP12), complement C1q tumor necrosis factor–related protein 1 (C1QTNF1), and growth differentiation factor-15. MMP12 was also associated with greater increase in AVmax over 6 years, greater degree of AV calcification, and greater expression in calcific compared with normal or fibrotic AV tissue. C1QTNF1 had consistent potential causal effects on both AS and AVmax according to Mendelian randomization analysis. These findings identify MMP12 as a potential novel circulating biomarker of AS risk and C1QTNF1 as a new putative target to prevent AS progression. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• H-terminated mesoporous Si is prepared by electrochemical etching of p+-Si wafer. • The large surface area lowers the limit of detection (LOD) of R6G to 3.2 × 10−9 m. • The suppressed diffusion of probe in small-size pores favors the lowering of LOD. • The vertical nanostructure favors the excitation of interfacial electric dipoles. Surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) of the various semiconductors remains a hot research spot. We investigate the SERS activation of the vertically etched hydrogen-terminated semiconducting mesoporous Si films. The results indicate that the thin mesoporous Si layer with small pore dimensions has very low limit of detection (3.2 × 10−9 M) of the adsorbed rhodamine 6 G molecules owing to the suppressed diffusion of the molecules in the pores such that they stay in the shallow layer. The vertically etched mesoporous Si substrate is much superior to the planar Si substrate regarding the SERS activation. The observed SERS activation is partially ascribed to the efficient excitation of the oscillating electric dipoles at the organic molecule–semiconductor interface. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The conformations and redox states of ferricytochrome c , before and after adsorption onto the surface of the indium tin oxide (ITO) nanoparticles, are studied to reveal the interaction nature between the cytochrome c and the conducting metal oxide surface. The characterizations with resonance Raman scattering and UV–Vis absorption reveal that the change of pH at moderate ionic strength induces transitions of conformations and redox-states, which suggests that there is intramolecular electron transfer. The conformations of the cytochrome c species are maintained after adsorption onto or collision with the ITO surface, but the redox states change significantly, and the change depends on the surface structure of the ITO nanoparticle. The adsorption or collision processes are governed by the pH-dependent electrostatic interaction between the proteins and the buffer anions bound to the ITO surface. This adsorption scenario differs from the conventional ones. Graphical Abstract The conformation and electron transfer function of cytochrome c are maintained when it is attached to the ITO surface by an intermediate HPO 4 2− anion via strong electrostatic force. Unlabelled Image Highlights • Cytochrome c before adsorption exhibits various conformations when pH changes between 1.0 and 12.0. • Protein adsorption is realized through magnetic stirring of the mixture of ITO nanoparticle and cytochrome c solutions. • Resonance Raman scattering and UV‒Vis absorption are used to characterize the conformations and redox states. • The conformation and electron transfer function of cytochrome c are maintained when it is attached to the ITO surface. • A pH-dependent redox transition that is indicative of autoxidation or autoreduction reaction is observed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This contribution establishes the relationship between the complementary condition and the singly terminated (ST) networks. The general theory is first presented in the form of bandpass/bandstop complementary diplexers. Furthermore, the well-known limitation of a complementary diplexer, i.e., using maximally flat prototypes, is overcome. From the first principle, it is rigorously proven that predefined complementary features can be obtained by connecting two channel filters in an ST prototype of the same filter function but exchanging the transfer and reflection part. This paper leads to a general design procedure for bandpass and bandstop complementary diplexers using arbitrary functions. A complementary diplexer design example with full electromagnetic simulated results and measured results verified the accuracy of the proposed theory. Finally, the theory is further extended to N-ports networks. A new “partially-complementary” condition is proposed. The new theory leads to an extremely simple and “direct approach” to estimate the performance of contiguous multiplexers without any optimization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Both Fasciola hepatica and Clonorchis sinensis are endemic in China, South Korea, Japan and other Southeast Asian countries. Reliable and sensitive diagnostic methods are needed for detecting their infections in humans and animals. Differential simplex and duplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) methods were developed. The PCRs targeted the second internal transcribed spacer ( its 2) (408 bp) of F. hepatica , and NADH dehydrogenase subunit 2 gene ( nad 2) (527 bp) of C. sinensis . Both simplex PCRs detected as little as 2 pg genomic DNA in one microliter in a 25 μL PCR reaction system. The duplex PCR had similar detection limit as well, and detected as low as one egg in 200 mg feces. These methods were analytical specific with no amplification being observed from the gemonic DNA of Fasciolopsis buski , Haemonchus contortus , Ascaris ovis or Eimeri ahsata . Of 158 sheep fecal samples collected from various farms, four and one samples were PCR-positive for F. hepatica and C. sinensis , respectively. The duplex PCR method described here is time-saving and convenient, and may prove to be an invaluable tool for molecular detection and epidemiological investigation of F. hepatica and C. sinensis in endemic area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Weakly supervised semantic segmentation with only image-level labels is an essential application since it reduces the considerable human effort to fully annotate image. Most state-of-the-art methods take into account discriminative regions or prior knowledge (called seeds) by applying the recent Classification Activation Maps (CAM) methods. As seeds used in the CAM methods could be considered as segmentation knowledge, increasing seeds will naturally improve the performance of the CAM methods. We treat such task as a seed exploration with clustering learning, which is different from the current methods in which region mining or seeds learning are performed in an end-to-end learning manner. In this paper, we propose a progressive framework containing autoencoders to explore numerous and accurate seeds to further improve the performance of CAM methods. Our explored seeds can replace the initial seeds, and thus, they can be integrated with current weakly supervised semantic segmentation methods for performance improvement. We show experimentally that our provided seeds lead to better model training. As a result, we obtain performance improvement from corresponding counterparts to reach 68.1 and 69.2% mIoU on PASCAL VOC 2012 validation and test dataset, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background/Aims: We sought to assess a consecutive number of patients with first-ever acute ischemic stroke (AIS), the clinical relevance in regard to functional outcome of the serum uric acid (SUA) measured at admission. Methods: In 2 prospective centers for observational study, serum concentrations of SUA were measured on admission in the serum of 710 consecutive patients with AIS. SUA concentrations were determined by high-performance liquid chromatography. SUA, NIH stroke scale (NIHSS), and conventional risk factors were evaluated to determine their value to predict functional outcome within 3 months. Results: During the follow-up, an unfavorable functional outcome (defined as a mRS score > 2) was found in 219 (30.8%) patients. The unfavorable functional outcome distribution across the SUA quartiles ranged between 12.4% (third quartile) and 50.6% (first quartile). After adjusting for all other significant outcome predictors, SUA concentration remained an independent unfavorable outcome predictor with an adjusted OR of 0.996 (95% CI, 0.993-0.998; P< 0.001). Conclusions: The data show that the U-shaped nature of the exposure-risk relationship was more prominent when the data were assessed in deciles (based on the SUA values). This model predicted the lowest relative risk of unfavorable outcome in the 67th percentile (corresponding to 309 µmol/L). SUA was significantly associated with the risk of poor functional outcomes in Chinese patients with stroke. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The extreme learning machine (ELM), which was originally proposed for “generalized” single-hidden layer feedforward neural networks, provides efficient unified learning solutions for the applications of regression and classification. Although, it provides promising performance and robustness and has been used for various applications, the single-layer architecture possibly lacks the effectiveness when applied for natural signals. In order to over come this shortcoming, the following work indicates a new architecture based on multilayer network framework. The significant contribution of this paper are as follows: 1) unlike existing multilayer ELM, in which hidden nodes are obtained randomly, in this paper all hidden layers with invertible functions are calculated by pulling the network output back and putting it into hidden layers. Thus, the feature learning is enriched by additional information, which results in better performance; 2) in contrast to the existing multilayer network methods, which are usually efficient for classification applications, the proposed architecture is implemented for dimension reduction and image reconstruction; and 3) unlike other iterative learning-based deep networks (DL), the hidden layers of the proposed method are obtained via four steps. Therefore, it has much better learning efficiency than DL. Experimental results on 33 datasets indicate that, in comparison to the other existing dimension reduction techniques, the proposed method performs competitively better with fast training speeds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The equivalent stiffness of a saturated poroelastic halfspace that supports an infinite Euler-Bernoulli beam under a moving point load has been investigated in this paper. The smooth contact condition is assumed for the interface of beam and halfspace, however, with an improved continuity condition, i.e. the continuities of contact normal stress and contact vertical displacements are imposed across the width of the beam. The equivalent stiffness of the halfspace has been evaluated using a contour integration approach such that contributions of the Rayleigh pole and the dispersion branches can be explicitly taken into account. Influences of the continuity condition and the permeability on the equivalent stiffness have been studied. It is found that the imaginary part of the equivalent stiffness is nonzero since the viscous coupling between two phases of the saturated halfspace has been considered. This observation fundamentally differentiates the present paper to the work by Shi and Selvadurai (2016) where an infinite permeability has been assumed for the halfspace, i.e. null viscous coupling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ostrich eggshell (OES) beads are an important kind of human ornaments, because their production reflects the development of modern human behavior, thinking ability, and cognitive level. Although the manufacture procedure of OES beads has been reconstructed in some Later Stone Age sites and early Neolithic sites, little information is known about detailed drilling technologies. In this study, synchrotron radiation micro-CT (SR-μCT) was firstly used to scan OES beads to understand microstructure, drilling marks, and perforation shape in a non-destructive mode. In contrast to other method to research drilling technologies, SR-μCT has a unique advantage that it could eliminate the influence of the adhering soils in a perforation in case that they are not easily removed. The results indicate that (1) SR-μCT could differentiate the eggshell species between Struthio camelus and Struthio anderssoni in terms of pore distribution. Compared to other destructive methods, including the anatomical method, DNA and protein analysis, the species identification through SR-μCT is non-destructive and faster; (2) the outer and inner surface of OES could be non-destructively judged according to OES microstructure, which would help infer the drilling direction; and (3) the perforation shape and drilling marks are distinct between the discontinuous twisting drilling and the multi-rotary drilling methods on the basis of replication experiments. According to these criteria, SR-μCT was applied to examine OES beads found in Locality 12 of the Shuidonggou (SDG) site in China, which were probably discarded in 1.1 k yr BP. The results show that most of ancient beads were firstly drilled from inside. According to the perforation shape and drilling marks, both the twisting drilling and the multi-rotary drilling method with different kinds of drill bits were used in working beads. Therefore, the people in SDG site mastered a few drilling technologies in the early Holocene, and the use of the multi-rotary drilling method reflects the technical development of ancient people. Up to our knowledge, it is the earliest known evidence of the application of the multi-rotary drilling method in China. Furthermore, this study will provide a new approach and important reference to understand drilling technologies of much older OES beads in the Later Stone Age or Upper Paleolithic Age. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Headwear research is an integral part of costume study, which is regarded as a cultural symbol of human society. In China, the lining of Futou (Chinese traditional male headwear) is called as Jinzi, whose production information is little known. This paper focuses on the analysis of materials and manufacture of Jinzi, found in Astana Cemeteries (dated from about the 3rd to the 9th centuries C.E.), Turpan Basin, Xinjiang, China. The fibers of Jinzi were identified by FTIR (Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy), Light Microscope Examination and Drying-Twist Test; while the black pigment was characterized through Raman Spectroscopy. Proteomics was conducted to analyze the proteinous glue. The results suggested that three Jinzi samples were made from flax mixed with ramie fibers, and one Jinzi sample was made from silk. All of them were painted with carbon black, and animal glue originated from bovine or caprinae was determined in two Jinzi samples. The different manufacture of Jinzi were probably related to the status of the occupiers of tombs. This is a unique report of the scientific analysis about traditional headwear in ancient Xinjiang. It is not only significant complement to the historical literature, but also the utilization of flax and ramie and the wearing of Jinzi shed light on the exchange of the species and culture in ancient Turpan area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Faience is a kind of ancient ceramic product which was widely found in many areas. Chinese faience appeared in the Western Zhou Dynasty (1046-771BCE), about three thousand years later than western Asia. The sudden and late emergence of Chinese faience implies that its production technology may be influenced by the West. However, little information is known about how the faience productions spread from the West to central China. The Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, located in the northwestern part of China, is one of the most important areas of cultural exchanges between the East and the West since ancient times. The study of faience unearthed in Xinjiang is of great significance to explore the early trade and cultural exchanges between central China and the West. In this paper, Synchrotron Radiation Micro-CT (SR-μCT) and Energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (EDXRF) have been applied to obtain the information of microstructure and chemical composition of faience beads excavated from Ya’er cemetery (1050-300BCE) in Hami Basin, The Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China. These faience beads are the earliest faience artifacts in China up to our knowledge and this is the first time to analyze the excavated faience in Xinjiang scientifically. Based on the microstructure of faience beads in CT slices, it is found that two glazing methods, direct application and efflorescence, were used in faience production. Additionally, a cylindrical core made of organic material sustained the faience bead during shaping and firing. According to EDXRF analysis, various glaze recipes have been used to produce these faience beads, possibly indicating different provenance. The characteristics of higher Na 2 O/K 2 O ratio of faience glaze showed that these faience beads might come from the West. Thus, it is suggested that there was a faience road from Western Asia through Xinjiang to central China about three thousand years ago. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The apicoplast, which is the result of secondary endosymbiosis, is a distinctive subcellular organelle and a crucial therapeutic target for apicomplexan parasites. The majority of apicoplast-resident proteins are encoded by the nuclear genome and target the apicoplast via bipartite targeting signals consisting of a signal peptide and a transit peptide. The properties and functions of these peptides are poorly understood, which hinders the identification of apicoplast proteins and the study for plastid evolution. Here, the targeting signals of the recently discovered apicoplast tRNA thiouridylase Tg MnmA of Toxoplasma gondii were analyzed. Our data using a reporter (the enhanced green fluorescent protein) fused with individual fragments containing various numbers of its N-terminal amino acids unequivocally revealed that the first 28 amino acids of Tg MnmA functioned as a signal peptide for cellular secretion. The N-terminal 150 amino acids were sufficient to direct the fusion protein to the apicoplast, whereas its deletion caused the fusion protein to be localized to the mitochondrion. Our data further demonstrated that the apicoplast, rhoptry, and mitochondrion shared similar targeting signals, indicating that the apicoplast localization peptide was trans-organellar in function. In addition, the apicoplast localization peptide was important for the healthy proliferation of tachyzoites. In conclusion, the targeting signals of the nucleus-encoded apicoplast-targeted protein Tg MnmA have been mapped out and the importance of this localization peptide has been elucidated in the current study. • The first N-terminal 150 AA of Tg MnmA target the EGFP to the apicoplast. • Without the localization peptide, Tg MnmAΔ1−150-EGFP localizes to the mitochondrion. • Mis-localization of Tg MnmA greatly affects the proliferation of T. gondii in vitro. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Development History of Ancient Chinese Glass Technology Edited by Fuxi Gan and translated by Hong Li and Lisong Hou. Through understanding faience and exotic glass artifacts in China, the reader will appreciate the globalization of faience and glass across Eurasia, especially along the Land and Maritime Silk Roads. Likewise, Han purple, whose production involves lead, barium, and silicon minerals and was earlier than lead-barium silicate glass, needs to be considered when exploring China's homemade glass. [Extracted from the article]

Lamp illuminants evidence the exploitation of natural resources, animal and plant domestication, commerce, religious practices and nutrition of ancient populations. However, the physicochemical analysis of their major constituent—burned, degraded and aged mixture of triacylglycerols is imprecise and may lead to ambiguous interpretations. We applied proteomics to analyze fuel deposits from eight lamps dated by 6th to 8th centuries AD that were excavated at the Astana necropolis (Xinjiang, China) and determined their origin by identifying organism-specific proteins. Proteomics evidence corroborated and detailed the assignments of source organism relying upon comparative profiling of intact triacylglycerols by shotgun lipidomics. We found that ruminant (mostly, sheep) fat, cattle ghee and sesame oil were common combustibles in Astana and concluded that sesame as an oilseed appeared in China under Tang Dynasty concomitantly with the expansion of Buddhism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a novel and unified synthesis approach and design procedure for microwave filters with extracted pole and nonresonating node (NRN) technique. By introducing a general circuit topology, the traditional extracted pole and NRN filters can be unified to a general prototype. With the new design process, the exact mapping relationship between the electromagnetic (EM) model of the pole producing element and the circuit model can be achieved. All the physical dimensions of the filter structure can be obtained by a fully analytical approach. No full EM optimization or adjustment is needed in the filter design. A three pole TE \mathrm { {101}} mode waveguide filter with one finite transmission zero is designed to illustrate the new procedure. In addition, a seven-pole TE \mathrm { {011}} mode filter with four finite transmission zeros covering all three possible types of arrangements is designed and fabricated to demonstrate the versatility of the proposed method. The simulated and measured results verified the efficiency and the accuracy of the proposed design method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The parasite Cryptosporidium baileyi can infect the larynx, trachea, bursa and cloaca of poultry, causing high mortality during severe infection and leading to substantial economic losses of the poultry industry. The rhomboid protein is very important in Cryptosporidium infection. In this study, a nucleic acid based vaccine candidate pEGFP-CbROM was constructed. After orally challenging with C. baileyi oocysts, the corresponding immune responses induced were analyzed and the immunoprotective effect evaluated in chickens. Obtained results revealed that this nucleic acid based vaccine could induce antibody responses and peripheral blood T lymphocytes proliferation significantly ( P < 0.05), while the peripheral blood B lymphocyte proliferation increased significantly ( P < 0.05) only at a high dose of 100 μg of pEGFP-CbROM, compared with the PBS control group. After C. baileyi infection, the duration of oocysts shedding was shortened by 2 days in the 100 μg pEGFP-CbROM group, and the rate of reduction could reach to around 71.3%. While no significant difference in body weight gain was observed among the immunized groups ( P > 0.05), the differences between the immunized and the non-immunized groups were found to be significant ( P < 0.05). Our data provides a useful basis for further work in cryptosporidiosis prevention and treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Changsha Kiln, located at Changsha in Hunan Province, south of China, is famous for exported and coloured porcelain during the Tang Dynasty (A.D. 7th-10th century) period. Although the opinion that copper-red porcelain originates from Changsha Kiln is widely accepted in academic circles, chemical characters of glaze and colour mechanism of its copper-red porcelain have not been fully investigated and studied. Therefore, a shard of opaque glaze porcelain with red pigments which excavated at Changsha Kiln (A.D. 7th-10th century) was analyzed by Energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence (EDXRF), Synchrotron X-ray absorption near-edge spectroscopy (XANES), micro X-ray diffraction (μ-XRD), microscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) methods. Combining with XANES and μ-XRD results, it indicates that metal copper is the major colouring-generation element status of the red hue. On the other hand, for the first time the study demonstrates that glaze of the sample from Changsha kiln is a typical phase separated-crystalline glaze with large particles surrounding acicular crystals which lead the opaque appearances. Because the sample from Changsha Kiln is Chinese ancient early stage copper-red porcelain relic, it will help to understand the origin of copper-red porcelain in China and enrich the knowledge of Chinese ancient ceramic culture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Babesia spp. are apicomplexan protozoan parasites of the red blood cells of mammals and are transmitted by ticks. Bovine babesiosis mainly caused by Babesia bovis and Babesia bigemina occurs worldwide, which is a great threat to animal health. Microscopy examination is a gold standard for the diagnosis of babesiosis. However, its sensitivity is too low. This study was conducted to establish a simple, efficient and fast LAMP-LFP method used for early diagnosis of animal babesiosis. LAMP was developed with a set of four primers targeting and amplifying six distinct regions of cytochrome b gene of Babesia spp. under isothermal conditions. Afterwards, a chromatographic lateral-flow dipstick (LFD) was used to detect LAMP products that were labeled with FITC at the 5′ end, avoiding gel electrophoresis. The LAMP-LFD method was very specific, yielding no positive results with DNA templates of Theileria sergenti , Thenileria ovis , Theileria equi and Toxoplasma gondii . The LAMP-LFP was highly sensitive and could detect 0.85 fg B. bigemina DNA and 0.14 fg B. bovis DNA, 100-fold higher than a conventional PCR assay. This method could be adapted for quick and accurate diagnosis of bovine babesiosis in the fields in case the whole blood could be directly used, especially for identifying carrier animals with very low parasitaemia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To evaluate the safety and efficacy of the conformable thoracic aortic endograft (Conformable TAG Thoracic Endoprosthesis [CTAG]; W. L. Gore & Associates, Flagstaff, Ariz) and Valiant Captivia thoracic stent graft (Medtronic Inc., Santa Rosa, CA) for acute type B aortic dissection (TBAD). The early and mid-term outcomes were analyzed for 413 patients undergoing TEVAR using conformable TAG thoracic endoprosthesis and Valiant Captivia thoracic stent graft for acute TBAD. 100 propensity-matched pairs of patients were generated, including 100 patients in the CTAG group and 200 patients in the Valiant Captivia group. Operative mortality were 2.33% (3 of 129) in the CTAG group and 1.76% (5 of 284) in the Valiant Captivia group. The median follow-up was 41.67 (26.00–60.67) months. No significant difference in mortality (9 [7.00%] vs. 36 [12.68%], P = 0.95) or re-intervention rate (3 [2.33%] vs. 20 [7.04%], P = 0.29) was observed between two groups. CTAG group have a lower incidence rate of distal stent graft-induced new entry tear than Valiant Captivia group (2.33% vs. 9.86%, P = 0.045). Lower incidence of type Ia endoleak was identified in the CTAG group (2.22%) than the Valiant Captivia group (14.41%) in patients with type III arch (P = 0.039). Both Valiant Captivia thoracic stent graft and CTAG thoracic endoprosthesis can be safely performed for acute TBAD with low operative mortality, favorable mid-term survival and freedom from reintervention. CTAG thoracic endoprosthesis had fewer dSINE even with larger oversizing and potentially suitable for type III arch with fewer type Ia endoleaks. • Both Valiant Captivia and CTAG can be safely performed for acute TBAD. • CTAG is suitable for type III arch with lower probability of type I endoleak. • dSINE rates were significantly lower with CTAG even with large oversizing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the emergence and progress of composite tools in the Middle Stone Age, the adhesive became one of the most widely used materials by early human societies. However, the precise composition identification of adhesive in archaeological remains is a real analytical challenge, because the adhesive mainly consists of organic materials that are susceptible to decay during burial process. Of particular interest is to know which animal/plant species were being exploited for glue manufacturing other than for food. The arid climate of the Xiaohe Cemetery, located in Taklamakan Desert, northwestern China, provides favorable conditions for the preservation of organic residues. A bone sculpture-inlaid wooden artifact was collected from the Xiaohe Cemetery, with some semi-transparent yellowish adhesive exposed due to the detachment of an inlaid bone sculpture. In this paper, micro samples of the adhesive were scraped for FTIR (Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy, primary examination) and subsequent proteomic analysis to determine the proteinous component(s) and precise origin(s). The identified tryptic peptides match most closely to known bovine collagen markers, suggesting that this adhesive was an animal glue made from cattle. These results reveal the diverse utilizations of cattle in the Xiaohe Cemetery, which provided not only meat, milk, hides, sinews and dung, but also leftover parts for manufacturing adhesive. This is the earliest evidence of adhesive identified in China up to our knowledge, which sheds light on adhesive development around 3500 years ago. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Well preserved Early Bronze Age cow dung in Xinjiang provides a unique opportunity to investigate important issues concerning environment, landscape, and livestock at about 3.4–3.7 ka in northwestern China. In this study, pollen and phytolith analyses, in conjunction with identification of macrofossil plant remains in the cow dung were carried out. Seeds, plant fragments, pollen and phytoliths extracted from four cow pies from the Xiaohe Cemetery indicate that the area was a typical oasis, where reeds ( Phragmites australis ), lovegrass ( Eragrostis ), and Aster -type Asteraceae probably served as the main cattle feed. Xerophilous taxa, such as Chenopodiaceae and Artemisia , were present as well. The paleo-diet of these cattle mainly consisted of C 3 plants, accompanied by small numbers of C 4 plants. Archaeological and archaeobotanical evidence reveals that the environmental conditions of ancient Xiaohe and the surrounding area were very different to that of the present day, surrounded by desert. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] ITO nanostructures were prepared by atmospheric HCl fume etching ITO-glass. [•] SERS on ITO nanostructures was observed and performed from the side of glass. [•] On-line SERS spectra were studied to monitor solution concentration variation. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Hutian Kiln, located in Jingdezhen City of Jiangxi Province of China, is well-known for the productions of bluish white glazed porcelain (Qingbai) from Song Dynasties (AD 960 – AD 1279) and egg-white glazed porcelain (Luanbai) of Yuan Dynasty (AD 1271 – AD 1368). Luanbai with an opaque glaze is thought to have evolved from Qingbai, which has a transparent glaze; however, the precise technological details for this process have not been adequately studied. This paper presents the analyses of samples of Luanbai and Qingbai porcelains from Hutian Kiln using various microscopic studies, including visible light spectrometry and Energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence. Some distinct technical changes have been identified that help to explain the evolution from transparent Qingbai to opaque Luanbai glaze. First, there is an increase in the proportion of potassium-rich ingredients in sherds dating to Late Song Dynasty, which suggests a change in the glaze recipe. Second, during Yuan Dynasty, both types of porcelain share the same chemical composition, but Luanbai products display distinct micro-structures and opacity in contrast to the Qingbai ware. Third, the overall firing temperature of Luanbai is around 1270 °C which is generally around 100 °C higher than that of Qingbai. The opacity of Luanbai ware may be the result of different firing techniques, including the higher firing temperature and a correspondingly longer time to heat and to cool the glazed porcelain. The results reveal new insights on the coloring mechanism of the two kinds of glaze and the transition from Qingbai of Song Dynasty to Luanbai of Yuan Dynasty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: We report on the geLC–MS/MS proteomics analysis of cereals and cereal food excavated in Subeixi cemetery (500–300BC) in Xinjiang, China. Proteomics provided direct evidence that at the Subexi sourdough bread was made from barley and broomcorn millet by leavening with a renewable starter comprising baker's yeast and lactic acid bacteria. The baking recipe and flour composition indicated that barley and millet bread belonged to the staple food already in the first millennium BC and suggested the role of Turpan basin as a major route for cultural communication between Western and Eastern Eurasia in antiquity. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Proteomics of non-model organisms. Biological significance: We demonstrate that organic residues of thousand year old foods unearthed by archeological excavations can be analyzed by geLC–MS/MS proteomics with good representation of protein source organisms and coverage of sequences of identified proteins. In-depth look into the foods proteome identifies the food type and its individual ingredients, reveals ancient food processing technologies, projects their social and economic impact and provides evidence of intercultural communication between ancient populations. Proteomics analysis of ancient organic residues is direct, quantitative and informative and therefore has the potential to develop into a valuable, generally applicable tool in archaeometry. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Proteomics of non-model organisms. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]