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Quasi-static tests in bending of thin-walled beams with different material design forms and weak link locations have been carried out, and their deformation mode and force responses are investigated by numerical simulations. The influence of some factors, including fiber direction, stacking sequence, and making holes in different positions, on the energy absorption of thin-walled CFRP beams is analyzed.

When military vehicles are subjected to a mine blast, the vehicles will be damaged and the occupants will be injured. The main objective of this paper is to study the feasibility and accuracy of the drop tower to simulate the response of the vehicle body under the actual explosion condition. The equivalent damage method of impact waveform simulation was studied, and the feasibility of the equivalent damage principle of impact waveform based on change in velocity was verified. By analyzing a large number of data of simplified seat impact simulation, the mechanical model of the drop tower was analyzed. Through the correlation study of the parameters of the drop impact load, the relation formula of the drop height required by the target load was constructed, and the customization of the impact load was realized. The response simulation of the protective seat in the explosion was completed in the drop tower, which verifies the accuracy of the drop tower in simulating the explosion impact load. In addition, the results provide a good basis for the follow-up research.

This case-control study aimed to investigate the association between PHLDB1 rs498872 polymorphism and the risk of glioma in a Chinese Han population. A total of 210 patients and 235 controls were enrolled in this study. The CT genotype and TT genotype were significantly associated with the risk of glioma (OR=1.48, 95%CI 1.00-2.19, P=0.05 and OR=2.40, 95%CI 1.06-4.10, P=0.03), respectively. In addition, T allele of PHLDB1 rs498872 polymorphism was significantly associated with an increased risk of glioma (OR=1.58, 95%CI 1.08-2.29, P=0.02). We also found that PHLDB1 rs498872 polymorphism was not associated with histology and tumor grade of glioma. In conclusion, this study found that PHLDB1 rs498872 polymorphism was significantly associated with glioma risk in Chinese Han population.

Based on the optimized molecular geometries at the B3LYP/cc-pVDZ level, the electronic and nuclear repulsion energies of nitramide (NH2NO2), O-nitrosohydroxylamine (NH2ONO), 1-hydroxydiazene 1-oxide (NH=N(O)OH), the transition state between NH2NO2 and NH2ONO, the transition state between NH2NO2 and NH=N(O)OH, NH2 radical, NO2 radical, H2O, N2O, H2, N2, O2, H, N and O were calculated by various second-order Møller–Plesset perturbation theory (MP2) methods. The domain based local pair natural orbital (DLPNO), explicitly correlated F12, density fitting (RI), spin-component scaled (SCS) and orbital optimized (OO) calculations were employed in MP2 calculations. The isomerization and dissociation energies of NH2NO2 were estimated by CCSD(T)-F12-RI as benchmark method. The testing results indicate that the deviations can be reduced by SCS method efficiently.

The status estimation for lithium battery is playing more and more important role in preventing the catastrophic failure of the system. The traditional data-driven methods treat the battery status estimation as a black box, which denies interpretability of the health status estimation process. Originated from belief rule base(BRB) methods, the extended belief rule base(EBRB) broadened the possible application areas of BRB. By transferring measured data into extended belief rules, EBRB combines the advantages of accuracy from data driven methods and interpretability from belief rule based methods. This paper employs EBRB to deal with battery status estimation problem. Moreover, in this paper, we proposed a novel rule reduction method to optimize the performance of EBRB. The effectiveness of the proposed method is verified by the data of spacecraft applied batteries. Comparison among the proposed method, conventional EBRB and BP neural network is given in this paper to further illustrate the performance of the proposed method.

In this paper, we focus on transmission and storage solutions intended to reduce power loss and energy waste in electric power systems, especially in smart grid (SG) systems, and propose a novel concept for designing the infrastructure of an SG that can improve the performance of the power system. We studied a variety of modern technologies, including high-voltage direct current (HVDC), high-voltage alternating current (HVAC), and distributed storage. After comparing the characteristics of HVDC and HVAC systems, we found it is preferable for HVDC to be included in transmission systems for long distance power delivery. Moreover, the addition of distributed storage consisting of traditional and modern energy storage techniques can enhance the entire power system and ensure it is stable and efficient.

In order to coordinate distributed generarions and reactive power compensation equipment to improve the voltage level, this paper proposes an improved network partition method of voltage control considering coordinated active and reactive power sources. According to the basic theory of the Newton-Raphson method, the sensitivity expression of the node voltage vs the node active power, the node voltage vs the node reactive power are deduced from the modified power flow equations. Two kinds of sensitivity matrices are calculated by the perturbation power flow calculation. The calculation process and steps are introduced respectively. Based on these two sensitivity matrices, a kind of comprehensive sensitivity matrix is synthesized. The electrical distance matrix is calculated to complete mapping the load nodes ino the corresponding voltage control region with the help of mapping algorithm. The validity of the proposed method is verified with the simulation results of IEEE 33 nodes.

Wastewater sludge ecological stabilization (WWSES) pilot scale experiments were conducted for thickening treatment and disposal of sludge which came from Cyclic Activated Sludge Technology (CAST) process. The study was performed over the periods from June to November 2005 and from May to November 2006, on a bed of 80 m2. The sludge loadings were stopped for the winter from December 2005 and resumed in May 2006. The results shows that dried sludge layer has higher permeation coefficients of 0.15–1.3 m/h. It is suggested that the percolate did not filtrate downwards evenly, part of percolate filtrates downwards along stems, roots and cracks existing in dried sludge which have lower flow resistance. The relationship of dried sludge thickness and operation time is in accord with quadratic equation under fluctuating sludge loadings. Linear regression equation can indicate dried sludge thickness variation under fixed sludge loading. In comparison with natural ones, coarse protein content of Phragmites australis roots in the system is twice as high, coarse fiber content of roots, coarse fat content of stems and leaf are obviously higher; and coarse protein content of Typha augustifolia in the system are obviously higher, while coarse fat and coarse fiber contents have no significant difference.

The three title complexes, NH4[HoIII(Edta)(H2O)3] · 1.5H2O (I) (H4Edta = ethylenedianine-N,N,N′,N′-tetraacetic acid), (NH4)4[Ho 2 III (Dtpa)2] · 9H2O (II) (H5Dtpa = diethylenetriamine-N,N,N′,N″,N″-entaacetic acid), and (NH4)3[HoIII(Ttha)] · 5H2O (III) (H6 Ttha = triethylenetetramine-N,N,N′,N″,N‴,N‴-hexaacetic acid), have been prepared and characterized by FT-IR, elemental analyses, and single-crystal X-ray diffraction technique. Complex I has a nine-coordinate mononuclear structure with distorted monocapped square antiprismatic conformation and its crystal structure belongs to orthorhombic system and Fdd2 space group. The crystal data are as follows: a = 19.343(9), b = 35.125(17), c = 12.364(6) A, V = 8400(7) A3, Z = 16, M = 552.26, ρcalcd = 1.747 g cm−3 μ = 3.828 mm−1, and F(000) = 4368. Complex II has a binuclear nine-coordinate pseudomonocapped square antiprismatic conformation and its crystal structure belongs to triclinic system and space P1 group. The crystal data are as follows: a = 9.7637(16), b = 9.9722(16), c = 12.945(2) A, α= 85.853(2)°, β = 77. 140(2)°, γ = 77.140(2)°, V = 1198.4(3) A3, Z = 1, M = 1340.80, ρcalcd = 1.858 g cm−3, μ = 3.380 mm−1, and F(000) = 674. As for complex III, it also has nine-coordinate mononuclear structure with distorted tricapped trigonal prism and its crystal structure belongs to monoclinic system andP21/c space group. The crystal data are as follows: a = 10.349(3), b = 12.760(4), c = 23.142(7) A, β = 91.020(6)°, V = 3055.6(16) A3, Z = 2, M = 797.55, ρcalcd = 1.734 g cm−3, μ = 2.674 mm−1, and F(000) = 1624. The results showed that although the ligands are different from one another in the shape and the numbers of coordination atoms, they all have nine-coordinate structures. However, one of them has binuclear structure and the other two have mononuclear structures because of the difference of the ligands.

The two title coordination compounds, (NH4)3[TbIII(ttha)]·5H2O (ttha = triethylenetetramine-N,N,N′,N″,N‴,N‴-hexaacetic acid) and (NH4)4[Tb 2 III (ttha)]·9H2O (dtpa = diethylenetriamine-N,N,N′,N″,N″-pentaacetic acid), have been prepared and characterized by FT-IR, elemental analyses, TG-DTA and single crystal X-ray diffraction techniques. The (NH4)3[TbIII(ttha)]·5H2O compound is monoclinic, P21/c; a = 10.398(1) A, b = 12.791(1) A, c = 23.199(2) A; β = 90.914(2)°; V = 3084.9(5) A3; Z = 4; D calc = 1.704 g/cm3; µ(MoK α ) = 2.376 mm™; R = 0.023 and wR 2 = 0.049 for 5429 observed reflections with I ≥ 2σ(I). The [TbIII(ttha)]3− complex anion in the crystal has a nine-coordinate mononuclear molecular structure with pseudo-monocapped square-antiprismatic configuration. The (NH4)4[Tb 2 III (dtpa)2]·9H2O compound is triclinic, P-1; a = 9.739(1) A, b = 10.010(1) A, c = 12.968(2) A; α= 85.890(2)°, β = 77.338(2)°, γ = 77.587(2)°; V = 1204.2(2) A3; Z = 1; D calc = 1.832 g/cm3; µ(MoK α ) = 3.015 mm™; R = 0.024 and wR 2 = 0.060 for 4750 observed reflections with I ≥ 2σ(I). The [Tb 2 III (dtpa)2]4− complex anion has a binuclear structure in the crystal; the two TbIII centers are equivalent and have a nine-coordinate environment with the same pseudo-tricapped trigonal-prismatic configuration. The thermal analysis revealed that the coordination cores of the (NH4)3[TbIII(ttha)]·5H2O and (NH4)4[Tb 2 III (dtpa)2]·9H2O compounds are stable up to 221°C and 252°C, respectively.

The integrated single element infrared detectors were developed for high-loading smart munition application using (Ba0.65Sr0.35)TiO3 (BST) pyroelectric films and SiO2 thermal insulating layer. (Ba,Sr)RuO3 (BSR) seeding-layer was deposited on the Pt/Ti/SiO2/Si to induce BST films c-axis preferred orientation growth. The capacitance dependant with temperature of BST films were measured at the temperature ranging from 230 K to 340 K, releasing that the temperature coefficient of capacitance was 1.6%/K. The pyroelectric coefficient of BST films was 7.45 × 10− 7 C/K cm2 measured by dynamic method. Infrared response evaluation of the fabricated sensor has been carried out with D∗ of 6.34 × 107 cm Hz1/2/W indicating that the integrated infrared detectors have potential application as gun-launched smart munition seeker.

Thick GaN films with high quality have been grown on (0001) sapphire substrate in a home-made vertical HVPE reactor. Micron-size hexagonal pits with inverted pyramid shape appear on the film surface, which have six triangular {10-11} facets. These I {10-11} facets show strong luminescence emission and are characteristic of doped n-type materials. Broad red emission is suppressed in {10-11} facets and is only found at the flat region out of the pit, which is related with the decreasing defects on {10-11} facets. Low CL emission intensity is observed at the apex of V-shape pits due to the enhanced nonradiative recombination. Raman spectra show that there are higher carrier concentration and low strain in the pit in comparison to the flat region out of the pit. The strain relaxation may be the main mechanism of the V-shape pits formation on the GaN film surface. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The title complexes, K[GaIII(Cydta)] · 2H2O(Cydta = trans-1,2-cyclohexanediaminetetraacetic acid) and K[GaIII(Pdta)] · 3H2O (Pdta = propylenediaminetetraacetic acid), were prepared, and their structures were studied by IR spectra, elemental analyses, NMR spectra, and single-crystal X-ray diffraction techniques. In the K[GaIII(Cydta)] · 2H2O complex, the Ga3+ is six-coordinated by the Cydta ligand yielding an octahedral conformation, and the complex crystallizes in the monoclinic system with the P21/c space group. The crystal data are as follows: a = 16.5039(19), b = 13.1499(16), c = 8.5204(10) A, β = 101.650(2)°, V = 1811.0(4) A3, Z = 4, ρ = 1.757 g/cm3, μ = 1.805 mm−1, F(000) = 984, R = 0.0291, and wR = 0.0698 for 3713 observed reflections with I ≥ 2σ(I). In the K[GaIII(Pdta)] · 3H2O complex, the Ga3+ is also six-coordinated by the Pdta ligand yielding an almost standard octahedral conformation, and the complex crystallizes in the orthorhombic system with P212121 space group. The crystal data are as follows: a = 8.8913(10), b = 11.6181(13), c = 17.0227(19) A, V = 1758.4(3) A3, Z = 4, ρ = 1.757 g/cm3, μ = 1.862 mm−1, F(000) = 952, R = 0.0288, and wR = 0.0724 for 3556 observed reflections with I ≥ 2σ(I).

(NH4)[EuIII(pdta)(H2O)] · H2O has been synthesized and characterized by infrared spectrum, fluorescence spectrum, elemental analyses and single-crystal X-ray diffraction techniques. It crystallizes in the monoclinic system with space group P21/n, a = 12.7700(15) A, b = 9.3885(11) A, c = 14.4070(18) A, α = 90°, β = 95.950(2)°, γ = 90°, V = 1718.0(4) A3, Z = 4, M = 508.28, D c = 1.965 g cm−3, μ = 3.708 mm−1, F(000) = 1108. The structure was refined to R 1 = 0.0238 for 3469 observed reflections (I > 2σ(I)). The EuIIIN2O6 part in the [EuIII(pdta)(H2O)]− complex anion has an eight-coordinate structure with a distorted square anti-prismatic conformation, in which six coordination positions, two nitrogen atoms and four oxygen atoms are from one pdta (=propylenediaminetetraacetic acid) ligand, the seventh position is an oxygen (O(8A)) from another pdta and the eighth coordination site is occupied by a water molecule. (NH4)[EuIII(pdta)(H2O)] · H2O is the first eight-coordinate complex with a six-member ring in the...

K3[DyIII(nta)2(H2O)]·5H2O and (NH4)3[DyIII(nta)2] have been synthesized in aqueous solution and characterized by IR, elemental analysis and single-crystal X-ray diffraction techniques. In K3[DyIII(nta)2(H2O)]·5H2O the DyIII ion is nine coordinated yielding a tricapped trigonal prismatic conformation, and its crystal belongs to monoclinic system and C2/c space group. The crystal data are as follows: a = 15.373(5) A, b = 12.896(4) A, c = 26.202(9) A; β = 96.122(5)°, V = 5165(3) A3, Z = 8, Dc = 1.965 g·cm−3, μ = 3.458 mm−1, F(000) = 3016, R1 = 0.0452 and wR2 = 0.1025 for 4550 observed reflections with I ≥ 2σ(I). In (NH4)3[DyIII(nta)2] the DyIII ion is eight coordinated yielding a usual dicapped trigonal anti-prismatic conformation, and its crystal belongs to monoclinic system and C2/c space group. The crystal data are as follows: a = 13.736(3) A, b = 7.9389(16) A, c = 18.781(4) A; β = 104.099(3)°, V = 1986.3(7) A3, Z = 2, Dc = 1.983 g·cm−3, μ = 3.834 mm−1, F(000) = 1172, R1 = 0.0208 and wR2 = 0.0500 for 2022 observed reflections with I ≥ 2σ(I). The results indicate that the difference in counter ion also influences coordination numbers and structures of rare earth metal complexes with aminopolycarboxylic acid ligands.

The title complexes, Na[ErIII(Cydta)(H2O)2] · 5H2O (I) and Na2[SmIII(Cydta)][SmIII(Cydta)(H2O)3] · 11H2O (II) (Cydta is trans-1,2-cyclohexanediaminetetraacetic acid), are prepared and characterized using IR, elemental analyses, and single-crystal X-ray diffraction techniques. Crystal I belongs to triclinic system (space group P1), which has a mononuclear eight-coordinate slightly distorted square antiprismatic conformation. The crystal data are as follows: a = 8.371(12) A, b = 9.952(14) A, c = 14.74(2) A, α = 88.32(2)°, β = 76.30(2)°, γ = 87.87(2)°, V = 1192(3) A3, Z = 1, ρ = 1.835 g/cm3, μ = 3.612 mm−1, F(000) = 658, R = 0.0194, and wR = 0.0520 for 4130 observed reflections with I≥2σ(I). Crystal II belongs to monoclinic system (space group P21/n), which has the binuclear nine-coordinate structure with tricapped trigonal prismatic conformation for Sm(1) and the pseudomonocapped square antiprismatic conformation for Sm(2). The crystal data are as follows: a = 12.283(6) A, b = 15.626(7) A, c = 25.875(12) A, β = 97.962(7)°, V = 4919(4) A3, Z = 4, ρ = 1.717 g/cm3, μ = 2.476 mm−1, F(000) = 2536, R = 0.0781, and wR = 0.1745 for 8554 observed reflections with I ≥ 2σ(I).

Ba 0.65 Sr 0.35 TiO 3 (BST) thin films were deposited by RF sputtering with a very thin Ba 0.65 Sr 0.35 RuO 3 (BSR) seeding-layer on Pt/Ti/SiO 2 /Si substrate. The crystallization of BST thin films and the surface morphology of BSR seeding-layer were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and atomic force microscopy (AFM), respectively. XRD patterns show that the BSR seeding-layer affected the orientation of BST thin film, which is highly a -axis textured. It was also found that the BSR seeding-layer had a marked influence on the dielectric properties of BST thin films. Comparing with BST thin films directly deposited on Pt electrode, the dielectric relaxation can be suppressed and dielectric constant increased due to a possible reduction of interface oxygen vacancies at BST/BSR interface. Moreover, J – V measurement indicates that the leakage current density of BST thin films on BSR seeding-layer were greatly reduced compared with that of BST thin films directly on Pt electrodes. The pyroelectric coefficient of BST thin films with BSR seeding-layer is 7.57 × 10 −7 C cm −2 K −1 at 6 V/μm at room temperature (RT). Our results reveal that high pyroelectric property of BST thin film could be achievable using BSR seeding-layer as a special buffer.

The phase shift between a pyroelectric voltage and a temperature oscillation wave in the measurement of induce pyroelectric coefficient using dynamic method is studied. Experiment results show that there is a 90° phase shift between a pyroelectric voltage and a temperature wave for intrinsic pyroelectrics, while there is no phase shift for induced pyroelectrics. Theory calculations are developed based on AC and DC equivalent circuit to elucidate the phenomena. It has been suggested that different phase shifts are attributed to the capacitance dependence on the temperature of specimens.

The syntheses and structural determination of Gd(III) and Ho(III) complexes with nitrilotriacetic acids (Nta) were reported in this paper. Their structures and compositions were determined and characterized by single-crystal X-ray structure analyses, elemental analyses, and IR spectra. The first protonated Nta complex was found. Structural analyses indicate that the structure greatly changes, while an alternative Nta ligand was protonated in the ((Py)2[GdIII(HNta)(Nta)(H2O)] · 5H2O complex and the(NH4)3[HoIII(Nta)2] complex crystallized as a centrosymmetric structure. By contrast, it is further confirmed that the coordination number and coordinate structure of all trivalent rare-earth metal complexes with aminopolycarboxylic acids mainly depend on the ionic radii and electronic configuration of the central metal ions and their countercations.

Syntheses and structure determination of the YIII complexes with ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (H4edta) and trans-1,2-cyclohexanediaminetetraacetic acid (H4cydta) are reported. The crystal and molecular structures of the complexes, as well as their molecular formulas and compositions, were determined by single-crystal X-ray structure analyses, NMR, IR, thermogravimetric measurements, and elementary analyses. The crystal of the Na[YIII(edta)(H2O)3]·5H2O complex belongs to the orthorhombic crystal system and space group Fdd2. The crystal data are as follows: a = 19.355(5) A, b = 35.431(11) A, c = 12.122(3) A, V = 8313(4) A3, Z = 16, M = 544.23, Dc = 1.739 g·cm−3, µ = 2.908 mm−1 and F(000) = 4480. The final R and Rw are 0.0483 and 0.1172 for 3284 (I > 2σ(I)) unique reflections, R and Rw are 0.0678 and 0.1440 for all 8499 reflections, respectively. The YIIIN2O7 part in the [YIII(edta)(H2O)3]− complex anion has a pseudo-monocapped square antiprismatic nine-coordinate structure, in which the six coordinated atoms (two N and four O) from the edta ligand and three water molecules are coordinated to the central YIII ion directly. The crystal of the Na[YIII(cydta)(H2O)2]·5H2O complex belongs to the triclinic crystal system and $$P\bar 1$$ space group. The crystal data are as follows: a = 8.405(2) A, b = 9.970(2) A, c = 14.763(4) A, α = 88.538(4)°, β = 76.193(4)°, γ = 88.100(4)°, V = 1200.6(5) A 3, Z = 2, M = 580.31, Dc = 1.605 g·cm−3, µ = 2.519 mm−1 and F(000) = 600. The final R and Rw are 0.0381 and 0.0911 for 4198 (I > 2σ(I)) unique reflections, R and Rw are 0.0530 and 0.1041 for all 6186 reflections, respectively. The YIIIN2O6 part in the [YIII(cydta)(H2O)2]− complex anion has a pseudo square antiprismatic eight-coordinate structure in which the six coordinated atoms (two N and four O) from the cydta ligand and two water molecules are coordinated to the central YIII ion directly.

Data cleaning of photovoltaic (PV) power generation is an important step during data preprocessing for further utilization, such as PV power generation forecasting. The PV power generation data can be treated as a time series. An improved data cleaning method based on approximately periodic time series is proposed. First, the abnormal data in the PV data time series is classified with three types of the outliers. Then these three types of outliers are quantified based on the physical characters of PV power generation, and the effective corresponding cleaning implementations are described considering the rate capacity of PV station and period of PV data time series. Finally, the data cleaning method is tested on the PV generation data from a certain real power grid. The results show that this data cleaning method can effectively improve the PV data quality, and provide an effective support tool for the further application of PV data.

Considering the complexity and uncertainty of operating information in distribution network, this paper introduces the use of random set for risk assessment. The proposed method is based on the operating conditions defined in the random set framework to obtain the upper and lower cumulative probability functions of risk indices. Moreover, the sensitivity of risk indices can effectually reflect information about system reliability and operating conditions, and by use of these information the bottlenecks that suppress system reliability can be found. The analysis about a typical radial distribution network shows that the proposed method is reasonable and effective.

A compact size linearly tapered slot antenna is investigated. The new designed antenna is with wideband and wide beamwidth. Measured results show that the half-power beamwidth (HPBW) of the compact size antenna achieves 120° at the operation frequency. Over the whole frequency band, the HPBW is wider than 100°. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 50: 1761–1763, 2008; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/mop.23507

The formula of vertical energy attenuation of Rayleigh waves in a semi-infinite substrate with a fluid layer has been derived. It was tested and verefied by ultrasonic experiments on thick aluminum plates with long man-made slots. A quantitative agreement was obtained between experiment and theory. Moreover, tomographic experiments were performed. The tomographic image can provide information concerning not only the two-dimension location and nature of defects, but also the position of defects in the vertical direction.

Aiming at the problem of sequential waveform design for radar target recognition with imprecise prior knowledge, a kernel based sequential waveform design algorithm inspired by power transformed correlation kernel is proposed. Numerical results show the superiority of the proposed algorithm.

Purpose: Increased consumption of anthocyanins is helpful to decrease incidence of cardiovascular morbidity. These cardioprotective activities are closely related to their antioxidant properties. In diabetic cardiomyopathy (DCM), protein kinase C (PKC) is involved in hyperglycemia-induced oxidative stress. Usually, PKC activation provokes modifications in extracellular matrix, induces myocyte hypertrophy and interstitial fibrosis. In this study, we investigated the effects of anthocyanin extracted from grape seed on cardiac remodeling and assessed mechanisms involved. Methods: Diabetes was induced in male SD rats by intraperitoneal injections of streptozotocin (STZ) at a dose of 65 mg/kg. Rats were divided into four groups: normal rat, diabetic rat, normal rat with anthocyanin treatment and diabetic rat with anthocyanin treatment. Anthocyanin (95 purity) was orally administrated at a dose of 100 mg kg-1ond-1 for 6 weeks. At termination, evaluation of hemodynamic parameters and oxidative stress status were performed. Left ventricular (LV) tissues were collected for the assessment of myocardial ultrastructure, collagen density, and cardiomyocyte hypertrophy. Finally, expression of PKC and ERK 1/2 in cardiac tissues were determined. Results: After treatment with STZ, rats developed diabetes evidenced by hyperglycemia, while experimental DCM was indicated by LV dysfunctions. Rats with DCM showed lower body weight and higher heart-to-body weight ratio, impaired systolic and diastolic function accompanied with myocyte hypertrophy and interstitial fibrosis, as well as elevated malonaldehyde level. However, anthocyanin treatment significantly restored LV dysfunction, decreased oxidative stress status, and attenuated LV remodeling as evidenced by reduced mean myocyte diameter and interstitial collagen deposition. Meanwhile, brain natriuretic peptide mRNA expression were markedly decreased. More importantly, anthocyanin could dramatically prevent up-regualted expression of phosphorylated PKC alpha and ERK1/2, as well as TGF-β mRNA expression and NF-κB activation Conclusions: Anthocyanin extracted from grape seed has protective potential for targeting cardiac hypertrophy and fibrosis through suppression of PKC-ERK pathway, highlighting a possible cardioprotective therapy for prevention of cardiac remodeling in DCM.

A broadband element with low profile (0.1λ at 1710 MHz) for base station antennas is presented. A special loop-feed technique, which achieves a double-tuned response like a bandpass filter, is used to broaden the operation band of the antenna. The proposed antenna yields 29% bandwidth of 1710–2200 MHz with return loss less than 17 dB (VSWR

In 98Cd a new high-energy isomeric γ-ray transition was identified, which confirms previous spin-parity assignments and enables for the first time the measurement of the E2 and E4 strength for the two decay branches of the isomer. Preliminary results on the 98Cd high-excitation level scheme are presented. A comparison to shell-model calculations as well as implications for the nuclear structure around 100Sn are discussed.

A broadband dual-polarised antenna with four end-to-end folded dipoles and a U-shaped ground is presented. Stable and symmetric radiation patterns at slanted ±45° polarisation have been obtained within the band 1.71–2.17 GHz. Measurements show two linear polarisations with an isolation of more than 30 dB over the operating frequency band. A return loss less than −14 dB is achieved and the measured cross-polar level is 23.5 dB below the co-polar level within the above-mentioned band.

The design and analysis of an ultra-wideband (UWB) aperture antenna with dual band-notched characteristics are presented. The antenna consists of a circular exciting stub on the front side and a U-shaped aperture on the back ground plane. By inserting a slot and a parasitic strip to the antenna, dual notched frequency bands are achieved. A conceptual circuit model, which is based on the measured impedance of the proposed antenna, is also shown to investigate the dual band-notched characteristics. The measured impedance bandwidth defined by VSWR

A compact ultra-wideband printed planar antenna with tri-band notched characteristic is presented. Two different types of slots are used to obtain tri-band notched characteristic. By using a U-slot defected ground structure, a notched band, 5–6 GHz for WLAN, is achieved. An H-shaped slot is etched on the radiating patch to obtain another two notched bands at 3.3–3.7 GHz for WiMAX and 7.2 GHz for some C-band satellite communication systems. The proposed antenna yields an impedance bandwidth of 3.1–10.6 GHz with VSWR

A low profile antenna, with polarisation diversity, for operation in a tyre pressure monitoring system (TPMS), is investigated. By combining the signals received from the two ports in phase or 180° out of phase, the antenna can operate at two different modes: a top-loaded monopole antenna and a planar dipole antenna located very close to a conducting plane (about 0.028 λ). Two significant techniques are used to enhance impedance bandwidth and to reduce antenna length. A prototype is implemented and the results obtained are given.

Large magnetostrictions of -1300 and +1100 ppm have been obtained in our Fe85Ga15ribbon samples. This was attributed to the shape anisotropy of ri bbon and the existence of Ga atom clusters with preferential orientation in the melt-spun Fe85Ga15 alloys. A small increase of magnetostriction with increasing temperature w as observed between 163 and 321K. However, at higher temperatures, the magnetost riction increases sharply with increasing temperature.

The preferential orientation of martensitic variants in the single crystal Ni-52 Mn-24 Ga-24 has been characterized by various methods, such as optical microscopy observation, strain measurement, and magnetic field - induced strain (MFIS). The origin of the spontaneous preferential orientation of variants was attributed to the internal stress with a magnitude of about 2.45 MPa, as calculated based on the experimental data. We found that the preferential orientation of variants produced the anisotropy, different effective elastic constants and distribution of magnetic domain, between two equivalent crystallographic directions of [001] and [010]. The resulting MFIS properties, such as saturated MFIS, saturated field, hysteresis effect and initial magnetic field have been discussed in detail.

The possible role of human papilloma virus (HPV) and herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) in the viral etiology of cervical carcinoma was investigated a series of cervical lesions were studied for the presence of HPV and HSV-2 DNA sequences as well as HPV and HSV-2 antigens by DNA dot blot hybridization technique and high-specificity PAP staining method. The results obtained were correlated with the histologic diagnosis. HPV 16 DNA sequences detected in cervical carcinoma biopsies were 43%, whereas HSV-2 DNA sequences were only 8%. HPV antigens detected in cervical dysplasia were 31%, whereas those detected in cervical carcinoma and cervicitis were the least. HSV-2 antigens were detected in chronic cervicitis, dysplasia and cervical carcinoma. The difference in positive rate between the cervical carcinoma and cervicitis groups was statistically significant, (chi-square test, P less than 0.01). No HPV DNA and HSV-2 DNA sequences were found in the same specimen, although both HPV DNA sequences and HSV-2 antigens were found in the same sample in some cases. The results indicate that the viral etiology of cervical carcinoma may be multifactorial. Both HSV-2 and HPV may be associated with cervical carcinoma, but the mechanisms involved are different. HSV-2 and HPV may act synergistically in the development of cervical carcinoma.