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The conventional method for synthesizing Ti 2 SC depends on the reaction between TiS and TiC, which requires the utilization of costly Ti, TiC, or TiS 2 powders. Utilizing TiO 2 as the raw material for the synthesis of Ti 2 SC enables the cost-effective preparation of this compound. However, the optimization of the TiO 2 /C/X n S m (sulfides) system is of utmost importance when aiming to synthesize Ti 2 SC through carbothermal-sulfurization of TiO 2 , as the formation temperature of TiS and TiC greatly depends on the X n S m. In this study, the identification of the thermodynamically dominant region for the formation of TiS and TiC in the TiO 2 /C/X n S m systems was conducted by utilizing various sulfides (63 types). Considering factors such as the challenges associated with removing by-products, accessibility, and toxicity, FeS 2 was ultimately chosen as a highly promising candidate. Thanks to the low melting point of FeS 2 , Ti 3 O 5 , the preliminary carbothermal reduction product of TiO 2 , has achieved rapid-deep deoxidation and phase reconstruction processes in the molten phase. Meanwhile, unlike the conventional solid-solid sintering reaction, which often results in residual reactants that are challenging to eliminate. This novel one-step phase transformation process that occurs in the molten phase exhibits minimal impurity phases, apart from the by-product Fe. Ti 2 SC with a purity greater than 99 wt% was obtained when the TiO 2 /C/FeS 2 was pickled to remove Fe after sintering at 1600 °C for 5 min. This work will provide the theoretical basis and a new path for the low-cost preparation of sulfur-containing MAX phases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Manganese (Mn) is an essential micronutrient in plants. However, excessive Mn absorption in acidic soils can cause Mn toxicity, which adversely affects plant growth and crop yields. At present, acidic soils cover c. 30% of the Earth's surface. However, the mechanism underpinning Mn uptake remains largely unknown.We identified cbl1/9 and cipk23 mutants exhibiting high‐Mn‐sensitive phenotype through the reverse genetics method. Furthermore, we identified the CIPK23 phosphorylated NRAMP1 through a variety of protein interaction techniques and protein kinase assays.Here, we demonstrated that two calcineurin B‐like proteins, CBL1/9, and their interacting kinase CIPK23 positively regulated the tolerance of Mn toxicity in Arabidopsis. The cbl1 cbl9 double mutant and cipk23 mutants exhibited high‐Mn‐sensitive phenotypes, which manifested as decreased primary root length, biomass, and chlorophyll concentration, and higher accumulation of Mn. In addition, CIPK23 interacted with and phosphorylated the Mn transporter NRAMP1 primarily at Ser20/22 in vitro and in vivo, and thereby induced clathrin‐mediated endocytosis of NRAMP1 to reduce its distribution on the plasma membrane and enhance plant tolerance to Mn toxicity.In summary, we found that the CBL1/9–CIPK23–NRAMP1 module regulates the tolerance to high‐Mn toxicity and provide insight into a mechanism of the tolerance of plants to Mn toxicity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the prediction of a nonlinear time series based on a leaky integrator echo state network (leaky-ESN), building a reservoir related to the specific problem is a key step. For problems such as poor performance of randomly generated reservoirs, it is tough to determine the parameter values of the reservoirs. The work in this paper uses the gravitational search algorithm (GSA) to optimize the global parameters of a leaky-ESN, such as the leaking rate, the spectral radius, and the input scaling factor. The basic GSA has some problems, such as slow convergence and poor balance between exploration and exploitation, and it cannot solve some complex optimization problems well. To solve these problems, an improved gravitational search algorithm (IGSA) is proposed in this paper. First, the best agent and elite agents were archived and utilized to accelerate the exploration phase and improve the convergence rate in the exploitation phase. Second, to improve the effect of the poor fitness agents on the optimization result, a differential mutation strategy was proposed, which generated new individuals to replace original agents with worse fitness, increasing the diversity of the population and improving the global optimization ability of the algorithm. Finally, two simulation experiments showed that the leaky-ESN optimized by the IGSA had better prediction accuracy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study focuses on a black micro‐arc oxidation ceramic coating prepared on the surface of magnesium alloy by the technology of micro‐arc oxidation in the electrolyte containing F– and Fe3+ as well as its mechanism of F– and Fe3+. It needs coatings to experience detail analyses on their thickness, roughness, corrosion resistance, thermal control property, valence states of elements, phase composition, and morphology of coatings, respectively, through coating thickness gauge, roughness tester, electrochemical workstation, AE radiometer, X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), X‐ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), and energy‐dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy (EDS). Results showed that with the help of F– in electrolyte, Fe3+ can be complexed and MgF2 can be obtained in the coating, which reduces the pores on the surface of micro‐arc oxidation coating. In addition, Fe3+ in the electrolyte contributes to the preparation of Fe2O3 and Fe3O4 in the coating, which can blacken the surface of the coating. Both F– and Fe3+ benefit to improve the corrosion resistance and thermal control performance of micro‐arc oxidation coating. There is higher iron oxide in the outer layer but higher fluoride in the inner layer of the coating. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Manganese (Mn) is an essential micronutrient for all living organisms. However, excess Mn supply that can occur in acid or waterlogged soils has toxic effects on plant physiology and development. Although a variety of Mn transporter families have been characterized, we have only a rudimentary understanding of how these transporters are regulated to uphold and adjust Mn homeostasis in plants. Here, we demonstrate that two calcineurin-B-like proteins, CBL2/3, and their interacting kinases, CIPK3/9/26, are key regulators of plant Mn homeostasis. Arabidopsis mutants lacking CBL2 and 3 or their interacting protein kinases CIPK3/9/26 exhibit remarkably high Mn tolerance. Intriguingly, CIPK3/9/26 interact with and phosphorylate the tonoplast-localized Mn and iron (Fe) transporter MTP8 primarily at Ser35, which is conserved among MTP8 proteins from various species. Mn transport complementation assays in yeast combined with multiple physiological assays indicate that CBL-CIPK-mediated phosphorylation of MTP8 negatively regulates its transport activity from the cytoplasm to the vacuole. Moreover, we show that sequential phosphorylation of MTP8, initially at Ser31/32 by the calcium-dependent protein kinase CPK5 and subsequently at Ser35 by CIPK26, provides an activation/deactivation fine-tuning mechanism for differential regulation of Mn transport. Collectively, our findings define a two-tiered calcium-controlled mechanism for dynamic regulation of Mn homeostasis under conditions of fluctuating Mn supply. Manganese is an essential micronutrient for all living organisms, but excess Mn in acid soils has toxic effects on plants. This study reveals that sequential phosphorylation of the vacuolar transporter MTP8, initially at Ser31/32 by the calcium-dependent protein kinase CPK5 and subsequently at Ser35 by CBL2/3-CIPK3/9/26, provides an activation/deactivation fine-tuning mechanism for maintaining Mn homeostasis in Arabidopsis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Manganese (Mn) is an essential micronutrient in plants. However, excessive Mn absorption in acidic and waterlogged soils can lead to Mn toxicity. Despite their essential roles in Mn homeostasis, transcriptional and post-transcriptional modifications of Mn transporters remain poorly understood. Here, we demonstrated that high-Mn stress induces an obvious Ca2+ signature in Arabidopsis. We identified four calcium-dependent protein kinases, CPK4/5/6/11, that interact with the tonoplast-localized Mn and iron (Fe) transporter MTP8 in vitro and in vivo. The cpk4 / 5 / 6 / 11 quadruple mutant displayed a dramatic high-Mn-sensitive phenotype similar to that of the mtp8 mutant. CPKs phosphorylated the N-terminal domain of MTP8 primarily at the Ser31 and Ser32 residues. Transport assays combined with multiple physiological experiments on phospho-dead variant MTP8S31/32A and phospho-mimetic variant MTP8S31/32D plants under different Mn and Fe conditions suggested that Ser31 and Ser32 are crucial for MTP8 function. In addition, genetic analysis showed that CPKs functioned upstream of MTP8. In summary, we identified a tonoplast-associated calcium signaling cascade that orchestrates Mn homeostasis and links Mn toxicity, Ca2+ signaling, and Mn transporters. These findings provide new insight into Mn homeostasis mechanisms and Ca2+ signaling pathways in plants, providing potential targets for engineering heavy metal toxicity-tolerant plants. High-Mn stress induces an obvious Ca2+ spike in plants, which activates the calcium-dependent protein kinases CPK4/5/6/11. Subsequently, CPK4/5/6/11 interact with and phosphorylate the vacuolar Mn/Fe transporter MTP8, primarily at its Ser31/32 residues. Activated MTP8 transports excess Mn2+ into vacuoles for segregation, eventually increasing plant tolerance to Mn toxicity. This study identified a tonoplast-associated calcium signaling cascade that orchestrates Mn homeostasis and links Mn toxicity, Ca2+ signaling, and Mn transporters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The crystal structure, magnetic properties and magnetocaloric performances of rare earth rich RE11Co4In9 (RE = Gd, Dy and Ho) intermetallic compounds are investigated systematically in this work. All compounds in this system crystallize in the orthorhombic Nd11Pd4In9-type structure with the Cmmm space group. The stacks of alternate RE and Co/In atomic layers with z = 0, 1 and z = 1/2 along the z-axis constitute the crystal structure. These compounds belong to the REx+yM2yXx family with x = 9 and y = 2, and the ratio of the AlB2-type and CsCl-type fragments in a unit cell is y : x, i.e. 2 : 9. The characteristic of multiple magnetic phase transition is revealed with a low magnetic flux density μ0H of 0.1 T for the present compounds. The ferromagnetic (FM) to paramagnetic (PM) phase transitions of the present compounds around their respective Curie temperatures (TC) are all second order phase transitions (SOPTs). Around the TC of 86, 37 and 20 K for Gd11Co4In9, Dy11Co4In9, and Ho11Co4In9 with a magnetic flux density change Δμ0H of 0–7 T, the values of the maximum magnetic entropy change (−ΔS maxM) and temperature averaged entropy change (TEC) with 3 K span are 10.95 and 10.93 J kg−1 K−1 for Gd11Co4In9, 4.66 and 4.64 J kg−1 K−1 for Dy11Co4In9, and 12.29 and 12.09 J kg−1 K−1 for Ho11Co4In9, respectively. The corresponding values of relative cooling power (RCP) and refrigerant capacity (RC) are 538.1 and 405.9 J kg−1 for Gd11Co4In9, 213.9 and 165.9 J kg−1 for Dy11Co4In9, and 475.2 and 357.4 J kg−1 for Ho11Co4In9, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cadmium sulfide/zinc sulfide (CdS/ZnS) core-shell nanoparticles in polyacrylamide (PAM) colloid particle were prepared by the succession of inverse miniemulsion polymerization and absorption. The cadmium sulfate (CdSO4)-PAM colloid was firstly prepared by inverse miniemulsion polymerization, the CdS nanoparticles were formed by reaction between CdSO4 in PAM particles and excessive sodium sulfide in being-absorbed miniemulsion droplets; and then the ZnS nanoparticles were orientated-grew onto CdS nanoparticles by slowly absorbing zinc acetate in miniemulsion droplets. The effects of the Cd2+/Zn2+ molar ratios on CdS/ZnS-PAM particles preparation were investigated. When the Cd2+/Zn2+molar ratio was 1:1, the Z average diameter of the CdS/ZnS-PAM particles was 178 nm. The CdS/ZnS crystals showed a greater size with Zn2+ mole fraction increase. The core-shell structure of CdS/ZnS nanoparticles was confirmed successfully by transmission electron microscopy observation, X-ray diffraction analysis and so on. The ZnS shell layer played an important role in modification and reduced the surface defects of nanocrystals effectively. The succession method will provide a great advantage in core-shell structure CdS/ZnS preparation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The crystal structures, magnetic properties and magneto-caloric effects (MCEs) of RE2Ni2In (RE = Pr, Nd, Dy and Ho) compounds were investigated. The results indicate that Pr2Ni2In and Nd2Ni2In compounds have a tetragonal Mo2FeB2-type structure belonging to the P4/mbm space group and undergo a second-order paramagnetic to ferromagnetic (PM to FM) transition at a Curie temperature (TC) of 7.5 and 10.5 K, respectively, whereas Dy2Ni2In and Ho2Ni2In compounds have an orthorhombic Mn2AlB2-type structure belonging to the space group Cmmm and possess a magnetic transition from PM to antiferromagnetic (AFM) at a Néel temperature TN of 19 and 10.5 K together with a first-order field induced metamagnetic transition, respectively. Moreover, an additional magnetic transition at a lower temperature of around 5.5 K is detected for the Ho2Ni2In compound. A considerable reversible magneto-caloric effect is observed accompanying the magnetic phase transition, and the maximum values of the magnetic entropy change (−ΔS maxM) of the present RE2Ni2In series compounds are determined to be 9.3, 11.5, 6.4 and 11.5 J kg−1 K−1 with a magnetic field change (ΔH) of up to 0–5 T for RE = Pr, Nd, Dy and Ho, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The crystal structure, magnetic properties and magnetocaloric effect (MCE) in A Gd(MoO 4) 2 compounds with A = Li, Na and K were investigated in detail. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) results suggest that all the A Gd(MoO 4) 2 compounds are single phased. The LiGd(MoO 4) 2 and NaGd(MoO 4) 2 crystallize in the tetragonal structure, whereas the KGd(MoO 4) 2 crystallizes in a triclinic structure. All compounds are composed of numerous irregular small particles and the corresponding constituent elements are distributed uniformly. Additionally, all compounds exhibit pronounced MCE at cryogenic temperatures. The maximum magnetic entropy change − Δ S M max values of the A Gd(MoO 4) 2 series compounds reach 33.6, 36.4 and 32.4 J/kg K @ 2.5 K with the Δ H of 0–7 T for A = Li, Na and K, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The uniform dispersion of Fe 3 O 4 nanoparticles and strong interfacial bonding with epoxy matrix are crucial for Fe 3 O 4 /epoxy composite with enhanced mechanical and thermal properties. Cube pure Fe 3 O 4 nanoparticles (PF NPs) by poly (dopamine) (PDA) coated and (3-aminopropyl) triethoxysilane (APTES) grafted (PAF NPs) are successfully prepared via co-precipitation and seed polymerization method with an aim to enhance the dispersion and interfacial bonding with the epoxy matrix. The tensile strength of PAF/epoxy (1 wt%) increases from 57.8 MPa to 65.5 MPa (a rise scope of almost 13.3%) compared to pure epoxy. The thermal stabilities of PAF/epoxy composites with various PAF contents (1 wt%, 2 wt%, 3 wt%) are higher than that of pure epoxy. The saturation magnetization (Ms) of PAF/epoxy increases from 0.125 to 0.7 emu/g with PAF loading contents increasing from 0.5 to 3 wt%. The results suggest that dispersion and interfacial bonding of nanoparticles make a pivotal contribution to the enhanced performances of composites. Image 1 • APTES grafted poly (dopamine)@Fe 3 O 4 nanoparticles and their epoxy composites were fabricated. • Improved the dispersion of PAF and interfacial bonding with the epoxy matrix were achieved. • Enhanced mechanical and thermal properties of PAF/epoxy composites were realized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The magnetocaloric effect (MCE) and critical behavior in the RE PtMg (RE = Tb, Dy and Ho) intermetallic compounds around Curie temperatures T C were investigated by magnetization measurements. All the RE PtMg compounds exhibit pronounced MCE performance with the maximum magnetic entropy change (− Δ S M max ) values up to 5.1, 7.2, 10.2 J/kg K under the magnetic field change (Δ H) of 0–5 T around T C of 58, 29, and 20 K for RE = Tb, Dy and Ho, respectively. The reasonable and accurate critical exponents for the present RE PtMg series compounds for RE = Tb, Dy and Ho obtained by the Δ H dependence of Δ S M method are evaluated to be β = 0.4691, 0.4681, 0.4141, γ = 1.0412, 1.0482, 1.1067 and δ = 3.2196, 3.2393, 3.6728 around T C , which are verified by the Widom scaling law and scaling equations, respectively. • The magnetocaloric property in RE PtMg (RE = Tb, Dy and Ho) was studied. • A considerable reversible MCE was observed for all compounds. • The critical behavior in RE PtMg (RE = Tb, Dy and Ho) were studied. • The obtained critical exponents obey the Mean-field model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract In China, the high-oleic acid rapeseed has an oil content of ∼42% and oleic acid (18:1) content of ∼80%. Compared to ordinary rapeseed, high-oleic acid rapeseed has higher levels of monounsaturated fatty acids and lower levels of saturated fatty acid and polyunsaturated fatty acids, and thus is of high nutritional and health value. In addition, high-oleic acid rapeseed oil imparts cardiovascular protective effects. Based on these properties, high-oleic acid oil crops have been extensively investigated and cultivated. We previously identified a CCCH-type transcription factor (BnZFP1, GenBank accession number XM_013796508) that is associated with high oleic acid traits from a Brassica napus subtractive hybridization library. In the present study, we overexpressed and silenced the BnZFP1 gene of B. napus. BnZFP1 -overexpressing plants exhibited an 18.8% increase in oleic acid levels and a 3.8% increase in oil content. However, BNZFP1 -silenced plants showed a 4.5% decrease in oleic acid levels, whereas no significant change in oil content was observed. Microarray and pull-down assays indicated that BnZFP1 has a total of thirty potential target genes. Further analysis and validation of one of the potential target genes, namely, diacylglycerol O-acyltransferases 1 (DGAT1) gene, indicated that it is positively regulated by BnZFP1. We also observed a correlation between elevated DGAT1 gene expression levels and higher oil content and oleic acid levels in rapeseed. Highlights • BnZFP1 -overexpressing plants exhibited an 18.8% increase in oleic acid levels and a 3.8% increase in oil content. • BNZFP1 -silenced plants exhibited a 4.5% decrease in oleic acid levels. • Pull-down assays and microarray studies have shown that DGAT1-1 is a candidate target gene of transcription factor BnZFP1. • BnZFP1 overexpression enhances the positive regulation of the transcription factor BnZFP1 on the DGAT1-1 gene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The structure, magnetic phase transition and magnetocaloric properties of ternary intermetallic RE 5 Ni 2 In 4 ( RE  = Dy, Ho and Er) compounds are investigated. The results of XRD and Rietveld refinement confirm that all the samples crystallized in the orthorhombic Lu 5 Ni 2 In 4 -type structure belonging to the space group of Pbam . The RE 5 Ni 2 In 4 compounds show various magnetic phase transition behaviors, i.e. a ferromagnetic to paramagnetic (FM-PM) phase transition at T C  = 105 K together with an antiferromagnetic to ferromagnetic (AFM-FM) at low temperature T N  = 20 K for the Dy 5 Ni 2 In 4 , the Ho 5 Ni 2 In 4 reveals two different kinds of phase transitions at T N  = 31 K and T C  = 19 K which are corresponding to the second order PM-AFM and the first order AFM-FM phase transitions, and a PM-FM phase transition exists in the Er 5 Ni 2 In 4 at T C  = 21 K. In addition, a large hysteresis loop with particular shape and a high coercive field ( H C  = 4 T) are observed at 3 K for the Dy 5 Ni 2 In 4 compound. The corresponding isothermal magnetization curves change into the state of reversibility when the temperature is 60 K, and the coercivity is reduced to zero. The maximum values of − Δ S M max are determined to be 4.7, 10.1 and 10.2 J/kg K around T C for the RE 5 Ni 2 In 4 ( RE  = Dy, Ho and Er) compounds in a field of 7 T, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The coatings were prepared on the surface of 2024 aluminum alloy by micro-arc oxidation. The effect of the addition of cobalt salt on the growth mechanism of the coating was investigated. The addition of cobalt salt prolonged the spark discharge phase of microarc oxidation and achieved the co-film formation of the solution component and the substrate. XRD, SEM, EDS, and XPS were used to investigate changes in the physical composition, surface morphology, and chemical composition of coatings prepared at different times. The hardness and corrosion resistance of the coatings were investigated as oxidation time increased. The surface of the coatings can be divided into two regions: the loose "cobalt-rich zone" and the dense "aluminum-rich zone", and with the increase of oxidation time, the surface of the coating becomes more dense and flat, and the pores are mostly closed. The time-voltage curve shows that the growth of the micro-arc oxide coating in cobalt-containing electrolyte can be divided into three stages. The coating grows rapidly in the first 15 min, and a black coating is obtained, with the color-revealing substance being CoO; the coating turns from black to blue after 15 min, as CoO transforms to blue CoAl 2 O 4. XPS and XRD analyses showed that the addition of cobalt salt significantly promoted the formation of alumina in the coating, and the conversion of CoO to CoAl 2 O 4 and γ-Al 2 O 3 to α-Al 2 O 3 occurred at the later stage of micro-arc oxidation, when the hardness of the coating would obtain a large enhancement. The corrosion resistance test results showed that the coating prepared by treatment in the cobalt-containing electrolyte for 60 min showed the best corrosion resistance with a corrosion potential 100.3 mV higher than that of the substrate and a corrosion current reduced by 4 orders of magnitude to 6.20 × 10−9 A·cm−2. • The new electrolyte enables the solution component to co-form a film with the substrate. • Cobalt-containing film layers contain cobalt compounds of different colors at different times. • The addition of cobalt salt encourages the production of α-Al 2 O 3 and γ-Al 2 O 3 in the film layer. • The coating prepared by MAO treatment in a cobalt-containing electrolyte for 60 min showed the best corrosion resistance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cadmium sulfide (CdS) nanodots in polymeric colloidal reactors were prepared by seeded inverse emulsion polymerization and then crystallized solvothermally. The cadmium sulfate (CdSO 4 )-polyacrylamide (PAM) seeds were synthesized by inverse miniemulsion polymerization with CdSO 4 solution as a co-stabilizer. The prepared CdSO 4 -PAM particles were used as polymeric colloidal reactors for the formation of CdS-PAM by feeding the mixed solution of sodium sulfide (Na 2 S) and acrylamide. The effects of the feeding rate on the size, distribution and morphologies of particles were investigated. The influences of the solvothermal treating temperature and time on the crystallite size were characterized. The CdS was well formed and then crystallized in the PAM colloidal reactors. The crystals growth mechanism was taken under consideration. The crystallite size was calculated by the X-ray diffraction (XRD) data, and their morphologies were observed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The small CdS crystals showed a blue-shift on the spectra of ultraviolet visible absorption and fluorescence emission. The small CdS crystals displayed the desired property of photocatalytic degradation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

WRKY transcription factors have been studied in a wide range of plant species, but have remained largely uncharacterized in legumes. To obtain insight into the functions of WRKY in legumes, we isolated and characterized one WRKY family member from Medicago truncatula , MtWRKY76 , which belongs to sub-group II. Expression analysis showed that MtWRKY76 was rapidly induced by abiotic stresses . MtWRKY76 overexpression markedly enhanced the salt and drought tolerance of transgenic M. truncatula and triggered abiotic inducible genes. MtWRKY76 was located in the nucleus and interacted with Medtr1g098680.1 that was deduced as ASR protein, which acted as a component of a transcription-regulating complex involved in abiotic stress signalling pathways. Interestingly, MtWRKY76 was found to be involved in regulated abiotic pathways via Solexa/Illumina digital gene expression (DGE) analysis. In conclusion, we demonstrated that MtWRKY76 was a multifunctional abiotic stress response gene in M. truncatula . [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Potato virus Y (PVY) is an important plant virus and causes great losses every year. Viral infection often leads to abnormal chloroplasts. The first step of chloroplast division is the formation of FtsZ ring (Z-ring), and the placement of Z-ring is coordinated by the Min system in both bacteria and plants. In our lab, the helper-component proteinase (HC-Pro) of PVY was previously found to interact with the chloroplast division protein NtMinD through a yeast two-hybrid screening assay and a bimolecular fluorescence complementation (BiFC) assay in vivo. Here, we further investigated the biological significance of the NtMinD/HC-Pro interaction. We purified the NtMinD and HC-Pro proteins using a prokaryotic protein purification system and tested the effect of HC-Pro on the ATPase activity of NtMinD in vitro. We found that the ATPase activity of NtMinD was reduced in the presence of HC-Pro. In addition, another important chloroplast division related protein, NtMinE, was cloned from the cDNA of Nicotiana tabacum. And the NtMinD/NtMinE interaction site was mapped to the C-terminus of NtMinD, which overlaps the NtMinD/HC-Pro interaction site. Yeast three-hybrid assay demonstrated that HC-Pro competes with NtMinE for binding to NtMinD. HC-Pro was previously reported to accumulate in the chloroplasts of PVY-infected tobacco and we confirmed this result in our present work. The NtMinD/NtMinE interaction is very important in the regulation of chloroplast division. To demonstrate the influence of HC-Pro on chloroplast division, we generated HC-Pro transgenic tobacco with a transit peptide to retarget HC-Pro to the chloroplasts. The HC-Pro transgenic plants showed enlarged chloroplasts. Our present study demonstrated that the interaction between HC-Pro and NtMinD interfered with the function of NtMinD in chloroplast division, which results in enlarged chloroplasts in HC-Pro transgenic tobacco. The HC-Pro/NtMinD interaction may cause the formation of abnormal chloroplasts in PVY-infected plants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Developed a wheat cut-edge detection method based on stereo vision to provide support for the automatic navigation of combine harvesters. • Designed a classification method for crop areas based on the density-based spatial clustering of applications with noise method. • Designed an extraction method for wheat edge feature points based on low-pass filtering to eliminate the interference from the ridge in the yield. A cut-edge detection method for wheat based on stereo vision was proposed in this work to obtain the navigation path of a combine harvester. First, the point cloud was acquired by the stereo camera. The crop area was extracted with the threshold obtained by the Otsu method. Then, the point cloud of the crop area was gridded. The grids were clustered by the density-based spatial clustering of applications with noise method to classify the different crop areas. After filtering the noise caused by the ridge in the yield, the grids of interest were extracted. The edge point was extracted in each grid of interest. The polynomial fitting method was then used to acquire the straight or curved cut-edge. A total of 300 images were selected for the test of crop area extraction and crop areas classification. The results showed that the success rate of crop area extraction was 93.7% and the success rate of crop areas classification was 91.1%. 100 images were selected to extract the edge points and compare with the true value of manual measurement. Experiment results showed that the average deviation of the edge points was 8.47 cm, the maximum deviation was 23.1 cm, and the standard deviation was 5.97 cm. The proposed method is thus capable of providing support for the automatic navigation of combine harvesters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hexafluorobutyl methacrylate (HFMA) was predissolved as sole co-stabilizers in miniemulsions in order to improve the surface properties of films prepared by final latex, and a semibatch polymerization was used for enhancing the HFMA usage efficiency. In miniemulsion polymerization, the effects of the HFMA on the stability of monomer droplet were investigated. The ratio of the final latex particles number to the initial monomer droplets number was used to discuss the nucleation formation process. In a semibatch minimeulsion reaction, the effect of HFMA dropping policy on the size of final latex particles was discussed and morphology of the latex particles observed. Although the HFMA consumption was equal in all semibatch experiments, the surface properties of film prepared by final latex demonstrated a strong difference. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] The fluorinated block copolymer is prepared by ATRP. [•] The copolymers are used as sole co-stabilizer in the miniemulsion polymerization. [•] The fluorine content in copolymer has effect on the process of miniemulsion. [•] The final latex films show the better surface hydrophobicity. [•] The nucleation mechanism of miniemulsion polymerization is proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The hybrid nanocrystals of cadmium sulfide (CdS) and bismuth tungstate (Bi 2 WO 6) (CdS@Bi 2 WO 6) were well-prepared in the nanoreactors of Bi 2 WO 6 -contained sodium polyacrylate (PAANa) latex particles, by means of cadmium sulfate/sodium sulfide (CdSO 4 /Na 2 S) solutions absorption and solvothermal treatment. The influences of CdSO 4 /Na 2 S millimolar ratio on structure and photocatalytic performance of hybrid nanocrystals were investigated. With 3:1 of Cd2+/S2- millimolar ratio in feeding, CdS nanorods on the surface of Bi 2 WO 6 cluster were obtained and its length increased after solvothermal treating; the resultant CdS@Bi 2 WO 6 degraded 96.1% of RhB after illuminating for 120 min, which was more effective than others. With the 1:2 or 1:3 of Cd2+/S2- millimolar ratio, the solvothermal treated cubic-CdS were agglomerated to cluster which attached on the surface of Bi 2 WO 6 cluster, and the agglomerates size increased accordingly. The photocatalytic mechanism suggests that the superoxide ions and holes were the active species produced by CdS@Bi 2 WO 6 in the photocatalytic process. The grown CdS nanorods on the surface of Bi 2 WO 6 had better charge separation ability than the grown CdS clusters on the surface of Bi 2 WO 6. The CdS@Bi 2 WO 6 hybrid nanocrystal with the definite-designed structure will possess the excellent photocatalytic performance. • CdS@Bi 2 WO 6 are prepared in PAANa nanoreactor. • Absorption process influences on CdS@Bi 2 WO 6 structure. • CdS nanorods is on the surface of Bi 2 WO 6 cluster. • CdS@Bi 2 WO 6 degrades 96.1% of RhB. • Combined process provides an innovating photocatalyst. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reported here is a systematical investigation on the crystal structure, magnetic properties and magnetocaloric (MC) effect of three rare earth (RE) molybdate RE 2 MoO 6 (RE = Dy, Tb and Gd) oxides. The X-ray powder diffraction and the morphology as examined using the scanning electron microscope indicate phase-pure and polycrystalline nature of these oxides. The temperature (2–100 K) and magnetic field (up to 5 T) dependence of the magnetic measurements determine the magnetic phase transition (MPT) and MC properties. All the present RE 2 MoO 6 oxides crystallize in a monoclinic structure belonging to C 2/ c space group with the antiferromagnetic ordering at low temperature. Moreover, the RE 2 MoO 6 oxides hold reasonable values of MC parameters including the maximum isothermal magnetic entropy change/temperature-averaged entropy change (2 K lift) and relative cooling power values have been evaluated with the magnetic change of 0–5 T, yielding 17.22 (17.08) J/kgK and 277.67 J/kg for Dy 2 MoO 6 , 17.03 (16.83) J/kgK and 261.12 J/kg for Tb 2 MoO 6 , as well as 27.68 (26.69) J/kgK and 228.14 J/kg for Gd 2 MoO 6 , respectively. These acceptable MC parameters make the present RE 2 MoO 6 oxides potential candidates for cryogenic magnetic refrigeration (MR). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Magnetic cooling (MC) by utilizing the magnetocaloric effect (MCE) has been considered as one of the most potential promising solid state alternative method to present well-used state-of-the-art gas compression cooling technique. In this work, the rare earth (RE)-rich indides Gd 6 Co 2.2 In 0.8 , Tb 6 Co 2.2 In 0.8 , Dy 6 Co 2.2 In 0.8 and Ho 6 Co 2.2 In 0.8 were fabricated and checked with respect to their crystal structure, magnetic properties and magnetocaloric performances. All the RE 6 Co 2.2 In 0.8 samples are crystallized with the orthorhombic Ho 6 Co 2 Ga-type structure and ordered magnetically. Considerable cryogenic magnetocaloric performances have been found. Around the magnetic transition temperatures of 76, 32, 50 and 18 K for Gd 6 Co 2.2 In 0.8 , Tb 6 Co 2.2 In 0.8 , Dy 6 Co 2.2 In 0.8 and Ho 6 Co 2.2 In 0.8 , the magnetic entropy change (Δ S M) peak values with a magnetic change (Δ H) equals to 0–70 kOe and the corresponding temperature averaged Δ S M (with 3 K-lift) are 11.84 and 11.82 J/kg-K, 8.96 and 8.80 J/kg-K, 9.59 and 9.54 J/kg-K, 20.83 and 20.38 J/kg-K for Gd 6 Co 2.2 In 0.8 , Tb 6 Co 2.2 In 0.8 , Dy 6 Co 2.2 In 0.8 and Ho 6 Co 2.2 In 0.8 , respectively. • The RE 6 Co 2.2 In 0.8 (RE = Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho) compounds are fabricated. • Magnetic properties and MCE in RE 6 Co 2.2 In 0.8 compounds were studied. • Considerable MCE parameters were observed at low temperature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rare-earth (RE)-based magnetic solids with large magneto-caloric effect (MCE) have been well investigated recently due to their potential applications in the field of environmentally friendly cryogenic magnetic refrigeration (MR). Herein, two polycrystalline RE-based REFe2Si2 (RE = Dy and Tb) intermetallic compounds have been prepared by an arc-melting way and determined with regard to the structural and magnetic phase transition (MPT) properties as well as the MCE and magneto-caloric performance. Both of the present REFe2Si2 compounds at room temperature are crystallized in a ThCr2Si2-type structure and undergo a first-ordered MPT from antiferromagnetic to paramagnetic state around the Néel temperature (TN) of ~ 4.05 K for DyFe2Si2 and ~ 6.25 K for TbFe2Si2, respectively. Large cryogenic MC effect together with excellent MC performance have been realized in DyFe2Si2 compound. The MC parameters with magnetic field change at 0–5 T of the maximum magnetic entropy changes and the refrigerant capacity/relative cooling power were found to be 16.08 J/kgK and 318.5/403.3 J/kg for DyFe2Si2 and to be 9.88 J/kgK and 105.9/140.8 J/kg for TbFe2Si2, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Canola is the largest self-produced vegetable oil source in China; however, excessive levels of cadmium, lead, and arsenic seriously affect its yield. In this study, canola near-isogenic lines with different oil contents (F338 (40.62%) and F335 (46.68%) as the control) were used as the experimental materials, and heavy metal stress experiments and omics analysis were carried out. The results show that superoxide dismutase and SAUR36 were closely related to heavy metal stress tolerance. Therefore, they may be used to screen for new canola materials with good heavy metal stress tolerance for canola breeding. Canola is the largest self-produced vegetable oil source in China, although excessive levels of cadmium, lead, and arsenic seriously affect its yield. Therefore, developing methods to identify canola materials with good heavy metal tolerance is a hot topic for canola breeding. In this study, canola near-isogenic lines with different oil contents (F338 (40.62%) and F335 (46.68%) as the control) and heavy metal tolerances were used as raw materials. In an experiment with 100 times the safe standard values, the superoxide dismutase (SOD) and peroxidase (POD) activities of F335 were 32.02 mmol/mg and 71.84 mmol/mg, while the activities of F338 were 24.85 mmol/mg and 63.86 mmol/mg, exhibiting significant differences. The DEGs and DAPs in the MAPK signaling pathway of the plant hormone signal transduction pathway and other related pathways were analyzed and verified using RT-qPCR. SAUR36 and SAUR32 were identified as the key differential genes. The expression of the SAUR36 gene in canola materials planted in the experimental field was significantly higher than in the control, and FY958 exhibited the largest difference (27.82 times). In this study, SOD and SAUR36 were found to be closely related to heavy metal stress tolerance. Therefore, they may be used to screen for new canola materials with good heavy metal stress tolerance for canola breeding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The poly sodium polyacrylate (PAANa) latex particles containing hybrid nanocrystals of bismuth tungstate-cadmium sulfide (Bi 2 WO 6 -CdS) were prepared by the combination process of inverse miniemulsion, absorption, and solvothermal treatment. The Bi 2 WO 6 -PAANa latex particles and CdS-PAANa latex particles were prepared by inverse miniemulsion polymerization for formation of CdS based on Bi 2 WO 6 (Bi 2 WO 6 /CdS) and Bi 2 WO 6 based on CdS (CdS/Bi 2 WO 6) hybrid nanocrystals, respectively. The effects of dropping strategies in absorption and solvothermal treatment condition on the size, their distribution and the morphologies of Bi 2 WO 6 /CdS-PAANa and CdS/Bi 2 WO 6 -PAANa latex particles were investigated. The dropping in order was better than simultaneous dropping in absorption process. The clustered Bi 2 WO 6 /rod-like CdS and the punctate CdS/punctate Bi 2 WO 6 hybrid nanocrystals could be grown under the same solvothermal conditions. The influences of cadmium sulfate/sodium sulfide (CdSO 4 /NaS) millimolar number on the grain size and the morphologies of Bi 2 WO 6 /CdS hybrid nanocrystals were investigated. With the CdSO 4 /NaS millimolar number increase, the grain size of CdS rod-like and Bi 2 WO 6 cluster gradually increased due to oriented attachment and Ostwald ripening, respectively. The Bi 2 WO 6 -CdS hybrid nanocrystals will perform the excellent photoelectric properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aggregation-induced emission (AIE) active compounds are fascinated due to their unique properties of limiting intramolecular rotation, and they have been developed in the biomedical fields. In this work, AIE material based on the Schiff base compound of chitosan (Cs) and salicylaldehyde (SA) was designed and synthesized. Cs-SA emits weak light in dilute aqueous solution, and emits bright light in concentrated solution and solid, showing obvious AIE performance. In addition, Cs-SA can also be used as a biosensor to detect Fe3+, and Cu2+, it has good bioimaging behavior. In addition, it can also be used as biosensor to quantitatively detect gram-positive bacteria and gram-negative bacteria, Moreover, Cs-SA shows excellent broad spectrum antibacterial performance in inhibiting E. coli and S. aureus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The layer-like RE 11 Ni 4 In 9 (RE = Gd, Dy and Ho) intermetallic compounds were successfully fabricated and systematically investigated concerning crystal structure, magnetic phase transitions and magnetocaloric effect (MCE). The RE 11 Ni 4 In 9 compounds crystallize in layer-like orthorhombic crystal structure (Cmmm space group) which is composed of CsCl-type and AlB 2 -type units with the ratio of 9 : 2. The RE 11 Ni 4 In 9 compounds present multiple magnetic phase transitions at low temperature. Except for the phase transition at low temperature region, the major phase transitions of the present series compounds are of second-ordered phase transitions (SOPTs). Around the magnetic phase transition temperatures at 91, 18 and 13.5 K for Gd 11 Ni 4 In 9 , Dy 11 Ni 4 In 9 and Ho 11 Ni 4 In 9 compounds, the values of peak magnetic entropy change (− Δ S M max) with magnetic flux density change Δ H = 0–7 T and the temperature averaged magnetic entropy change with 3 K lift are 3.58 and 3.55 J/kg-K, 6.02 and 5.94 J/kg-K, as well as 12.44 and 12.25 J/kg-K for Gd 11 Ni 4 In 9 , Dy 11 Ni 4 In 9 and Ho 11 Ni 4 In 9 compounds, respectively. The corresponding relative cooling power (refrigerant capacity) values are 269.0 (206.4), 194.9 (144.7), and 353.0 (269.2) J/kg, respectively. • The RE 11 Ni 4 In 9 (RE = Gd, Dy and Ho) intermetallic compounds are fabricated. • Magnetic properties and MCE in RE 11 Ni 4 In 9 amorphous ribbon were studied. • Considerable MCE parameters were observed at low temperature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Zinc oxide (ZnO) @ poly (N -isopropyl acrylamide (NIPAM)) (PNIPAM) nanospheres, which the modified ZnO nanoparticles had attached on the interface-layer of PNIPAM, were a special structure material prepared by inverse Pickering miniemulsion polymerization. The original ZnO nanoparticles were synthesized by the sol-gel method and then their surfaces were modified to be partly hydrophobic. The NIPAM inverse Pickering miniemulsion was polymerized to form ZnO@PNIPAM nanospheres, using the modified ZnO nanoparticles as a solid surfactant. The influences of the dosage ratios of modifier to original ZnO nanoparticles on size, distribution and surface hydrophobicity of the modified ZnO nanoparticles were discussed. The self-assembly mechanism of the modified ZnO nanoparticles on the oil/water interface was suggested. The effect of dosage and size of the modified ZnO nanoparticles on miniemulsion stability and polymerization was researched. The nanospheres with the specific ZnO@PNIPAM structure and good dispersibility could be successfully prepared by the inverse Pickering miniemulsion method. The extracted ZnO@PNIPAM nanospheres simultaneously exhibited strong ultraviolet-visible absorption characteristics and luminescence intensity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The europium-based intermetallic compounds EuAgZn, EuAgCd, EuPtZn and EuAuCd were synthesized and their magnetic properties and magnetocaloric performances were systematically studied. EuAgZn and EuAgCd compounds crystallize in a KHg 2 -type structure belonging to space group Imma , whereas EuPtZn and EuAuCd crystallize in a TiNiSi-type structure belonging to space group Pnma. The four compounds contain stable divalent europium and order ferromagnetically with Curie temperatures of T C ~29, 27, 20 and 22 K for EuAgZn, EuAgCd, EuPtZn and EuAuCd, respectively. A considerable tunable reversible MCE can be observed accompanied by a second-order magnetic transition. For the field change of 0–2 and 0–5 T, the − Δ S Μ max values are evaluated to be 7.7, 7.2, 8.2, 8.0 and 14.9, 13.5, 15.3, 13.7 J/kgK for EuAgZn, EuAgCd, EuPtZn and EuAuCd, respectively. • Four Eu-based equiatomic intermetallic compounds were synthesized. • Magnetism and MCE in EuAgZn, EuAgCd, EuPtZn and EuAuCd were studied. • All the compounds exhibit large MCE at low temperature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bismuth tungstate (Bi 2 WO 6)-sodium polyacrylate (PAANa) latex particles were prepared by inverse miniemulsion and hydrothermal treatment. The effects of Bi(NO 3) 3 /Na 2 WO 4 dosage ratio and different hydrothermal treatment conditions on the particle size and morphology of Bi 2 WO 6 -PAANa latex particles were studied. The results show that the stability of the inverse microemulsion droplets was effectively improved with the increase of the soluble salt in the inverse microemulsion system, and the effect of different hydrothermal treatment on the particle size of the colloidal particles was not significant. During the formation of Bi 2 WO 6 nanoparticles, PAANa latex particles could become a reaction site for forming Bi 2 WO 6 nanoparticles, and Bi 2 WO 6 nanoparticles were dispersed in the polymer. The effects of different hydrothermal treatment conditions on the size, crystal form and light absorption properties of Bi 2 WO 6 nanocrystals were studied. The results show that Bi 2 WO 6 nanoparticles with orthorhombic tungsten-rhenium ore structure could be prepared under different hydrothermal treatment conditions; moreover, the temperature at which the hydrothermal treatment forms the lowest Bi 2 WO 6 nanocrystals was 130 °C. But at pH 9, the product was no longer pure phase. The prepared nanocrystals simultaneously exhibited strong ultraviolet-visible absorption characteristics and luminescence intensity. Finally, the Bi 2 WO 6 nanoparticles with photoluminescence properties could be successfully prepared by the inverse miniemulsion method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A cut-edge detection method based on machine vision was developed for obtaining the navigation path of a combine harvester. First, the Cr component in the YCbCr color model was selected as the grayscale feature factor. Then, by detecting the end of the crop row, judging the target demarcation and getting the feature points, the region of interest (ROI) was automatically gained. Subsequently, the vertical projection was applied to reduce the noise. All the points in the ROI were calculated, and a dividing point was found in each row. The hierarchical clustering method was used to extract the outliers. At last, the polynomial fitting method was used to acquire the straight or curved cut-edge. The results gained from the samples showed that the average error for locating the cut-edge was 2.84 cm. The method was capable of providing support for the automatic navigation of a combine harvester. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Weed infestation has seriously affected the yield and quality of rapeseed, which is a globally significant oil crop. While the application of chemical herbicides in agriculture has greatly boosted agricultural efficiency and crop yield, it has also unfortunately led to escalating environmental pollution and the emergence of herbicide-resistant weeds. The ptxD gene, originating from bacteria, encodes the phosphite dehydrogenase enzyme that is responsible for converting phosphite (Phi) into orthophosphate (Pi). Phi remains unusable by plants and most microorganisms, but upon its conversion into Pi, it becomes a viable nutrient source for plants. This unique function of the ptxD gene offers promising avenues for the development of innovative weed control technologies. We tested the Phi tolerance of weeds and ptxD-expressing rapeseed (Brassica napus) through greenhouse experiments in rapeseed fields. The results revealed that a Phi concentration of 200 mg·kg of soil−1 inhibited the growth of all weeds in the rapeseed fields, while the ptxD-expressing rapeseed exhibited robust tolerance to this concentration of Phi. In field experiments, the application of 60 g·m−2 of Phi allowed the ptxD-expressing rapeseed to grow normally, while the weeds grew slowly due to phosphorus deficiency, resulting in the rapeseed having a strong competitive advantage over the weeds. The leaves of the transgenic rapeseed plants covered gaps in the field as they grew, further inhibiting weed growth and completely eliminating their harm due to shading effects. The combination of ptxD-expressing rapeseed and the application of phosphite offers a sustainable alternative to herbicides for weed management in rapeseed fields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Strong artificial and natural selection causes the formation of highly conserved haplotypes that harbor agronomically important genes. GWAS combination with haplotype analysis has evolved as an effective method to dissect the genetic architecture of complex traits in crop species. Results: We used the 60 K Brassica Infinium SNP array to perform a genome-wide analysis of haplotype blocks associated with oleic acid (C18:1) in rapeseed. Six haplotype regions were identified as significantly associated with oleic acid (C18:1) that mapped to chromosomes A02, A07, A08, C01, C02, and C03. Additionally, whole-genome sequencing of 50 rapeseed accessions revealed three genes (BnmtACP2-A02, BnABCI13-A02 and BnECI1-A02) in the A02 chromosome haplotype region and two genes (BnFAD8-C02 and BnSDP1-C02) in the C02 chromosome haplotype region that were closely linked to oleic acid content phenotypic variation. Moreover, the co-expression network analysis uncovered candidate genes from these two different haplotype regions with potential regulatory interrelationships with oleic acid content accumulation. Conclusions: Our results suggest that several candidate genes are closely linked, which provides us with an opportunity to develop functional haplotype markers for the improvement of the oleic acid content in rapeseed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In southern China, the fresh shoots of rape are used as a high-quality seasonal vegetable owing to their pleasant taste. In this study, we investigated the taste and quality of fresh shoots of Fanmingyoutai, which was derived from WH23 by 60Co mutation. WH23 was used as a control (CK). Physiological indexes, transcriptome analyses, and metabolomics analyses between Fanmingyoutai and CK were studied and the related key differential genes were identified. The results showed that the glucosinolate content of Fanmingyoutai seeds was 51.14% lower than that of CK, and the contents of soluble sugar and vitamin C in the fresh shoots of Fanmingyoutai were 2.1 times and 1.4 times higher, respectively, than CK. Using transcriptome analyses, we identified that the differential genes were involved in glycan biosynthesis and metabolism, energy metabolism, carbohydrate metabolism, and the metabolism of cofactors and vitamins. Metabolomics analyses demonstrated that the contents of sucrose and D-fructose in the fresh shoots of Fanmingyoutai were 1.22 times and 1.15 times higher, respectively, than those in CK. Using qRT-PCR analyses, the expression of SWEET17, STP5, and GSL in the fresh shoots and leaves of Fanmingyoutai was two times higher than that in CK. SWEET17 (involved in sugar production and transport), STP5 (involved in monosaccharide transport), and GSL (involved in glucosinolate accumulation) may be the key functional genes. We concluded that the low glucosinolate content and high sucrose and D-fructose contents may be the main factors affecting the taste of fresh shoots of Fanmingyoutai and CK; SWEET17, STP5, and GSL may be the key related genes. This research provides a reference for the breeding and molecular mechanisms of new edible rape varieties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Polycrystalline double perovskite Y 2 CoMnO 6 oxides ceramics sintered at four different temperatures from 1000 °C to 1300 °C have been fabricated by conventional sol-gel method. All the Y 2 CoMnO 6 compounds are single phase with monoclinic structure (P 21 /n space group). The mean grain size grows significantly large and the shape becomes regular obviously with increasing sintering temperature. The effect of sintering temperature on magnetic properties of Y 2 CoMnO 6 compounds has been studied in detail. We found that the oxygen vacancies are introduced by sintering at high temperature has a certain influence on the magnetic properties. Moreover, the magnetic entropy changes (-∆ S M) as well as relative cooling power (RCP) in the double perovskite Y 2 CoMnO 6 oxides ceramics around paramagnetic to ferromagnetic transition were also investigated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Global path conflict detection. • Conflict resolution strategy. • Time window generation. Path planning is one of the crucial problems of multi-machine cooperative navigation. In the context of regional farmland operation, multiple agricultural machines often need to complete multiple tasks together. Studies on global path conflict detection algorithms based on topographic maps and time windows have been conducted to solve the global path conflict problem of multiple agricultural machinery cooperation in the farmland operation environment. First, the global path conflict problem of multiple agricultural machinery cooperation was analyzed. The constraints of time window conflict detection and the time parameters to be considered in calculating the time window were proposed. Then, the global path preplanning was performed based on a topographic map and Dijkstra algorithm. According to the path preplanning results, the global path conflict was detected based on the time window. Finally, the global path conflict detection algorithm was simulated on MATLAB with the topographic map of Zhuozhou Experimental Farm as an example. The global path preplanning results show that the four paths overlapped in different degrees at nodes 1, 2, 7, 11, 15, 20, and 27. Path 3 and Path 1 were inclusive interval-type conflicts, and Path 4 and Path 1 were node-type conflicts. Path 3 adopted the change path strategy after the conflicting paths were replanned. The path was changed from [15-11-7-2-1-5-10-14-18-31] to [15-21-24-18-31]. Path 4 adopted the waiting strategy, and its paths did not change. Although the four paths still had different degrees of path overlap, there were no time conflict in the overlapping part of the replanned path. The simulation results show that the global path optimization and path conflict detection of multiple agricultural machinery cooperation could be realized based on the topographic map and time window. Moreover, the conflict resolution strategy with the least time could be obtained to achieve a safe, efficient, and conflict-free global path of multiple agricultural machinery cooperation. Thus, a foundation for further solving the path planning of multiple agricultural machinery cooperation in the complex operation environment of regional farmland is laid. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

SUMMARY: Nitrogen (N) is one of the most essential mineral elements for plants. Brassinosteroids (BRs) play key roles in plant growth and development. Emerging evidence indicates that BRs participate in the responses to nitrate deficiency. However, the precise molecular mechanism underlying the BR signaling pathway in regulating nitrate deficiency remains largely unknown. The transcription factor BES1 regulates the expression of many genes in response to BRs. Root length, nitrate uptake and N concentration of bes1‐D mutants were higher than those of wild‐type under nitrate deficiency. BES1 levels strongly increased under low nitrate conditions, especially in the non‐phosphorylated (active) form. Furthermore, BES1 directly bound to the promoters of NRT2.1 and NRT2.2 to promote their expression under nitrate deficiency. Taken together, BES1 is a key mediator that links BR signaling under nitrate deficiency by modulating high affinity nitrate transporters in plants. Significance Statement: The accumulation of BES1 in the non‐phosphorylated state under low nitrogen conditions directly promotes their transcription by binding to the promoters of NRT2.1 and NRT2.2, thereby enhancing the uptake of NO3− in roots and improving the utilization efficiency of plants to nitrogen. The present study provides direct evidence that brassinosteroid signals are directly involved in the regulation of nitrogen uptake and nitrogen transporters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The objective of this study was to compare the clinical efficacy of DRTR (Double Reverse Traction Repositor, DRTR)and traction table in the treatment of femoral shaft fractures with the aid of AN-IMN (Antegrade intramedullary nailing). Patients and Methods: In this study, patients with femoral shaft fractures admitted to the Department of Orthopedics at Zhaoqing First People’s Hospital from May 2018 to October 2022 were recruited. All patients were treated with anterograde intramedullary nailing, with 23 patients in the DRTR-assisted group and 21 patients in the traction table-assisted group. The demographic characteristics, fracture classification, intraoperative data, postoperative data, and prognostic indicators of the two groups were recorded and analyzed retrospectively. All procedures were performed by the same team of experienced physicians. Results: All the patients in the two groups were followed up for more than 12 months. Both traction methods could provide stable traction for the operator during AN-IMN, and there was no significant difference in demographic characteristics and fracture classification. The intraoperative fluoroscopy times and opening reduction rate of the DRTR group were lower than those of the traction table group (P < 0.05), and the postoperative Harris Hip Score, as well as the Lyshol Lysholm knee function Score of the DRTR group, were significantly higher than the traction table group members (P < 0.05). Postoperative complications such as perineal soft tissue injury and lateral femoral cutaneous nerve injury occurred in the traction table group, but not in the DRTR group. Conclusion: DRTR can safely and effectively provide continuous and stable traction in the femoral shaft fractures surgery, and outperforms the traction table in the number of intraoperative fluoroscopy, opening reduction rate, reduction of complications, and postoperative joint function score. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Cadmium (Cd) is a toxic heavy element for plant growth and development, and plants have evolved many strategies to cope with Cd stress. However, the mechanisms how plants sense Cd stress and regulate the function of transporters remain very rudimentary.Here, we found that Cd stress induces obvious Ca2+ signals in Arabidopsis roots. Furthermore, we identified the calcium‐dependent protein kinases CPK21 and CPK23 that interacted with the Cd transporter NRAMP6 through a variety of protein interaction techniques.Then, we confirmed that the cpk21 23 double mutants significantly enhanced the sensitive phenotype of cpk23 single mutant under Cd stress, while the overexpression and continuous activation of CPK21 and CPK23 enhanced plants tolerance to Cd stress. Multiple biochemical and physiological analyses in yeast and plants demonstrated that CPK21/23 phosphorylate NRAMP6 primarily at Ser489 and Thr505 to inhibit the Cd transport activity of NRAMP6, thereby improving the Cd tolerance of plants.Taken together, we found a plasma membrane‐associated calcium signaling that modulates Cd tolerance. These results provide new insights into the molecular breeding of crop tolerance to Cd stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A kaolinite-serine intercalation compound was synthesized via the guest displacement method. Serine molecules were intercalated into kaolinite to form kaolinite-serine through exchange between serine and the guest molecules ethylene glycol or water, which was inserted into the interlayer space of kaolinite beforehand. The thickness of kaolinite-serine particles decreased to 14 nm from 30 nm of raw kaolinite after intercalation. The interlayer distance of kaolinite reached approximately 1.13 nm after the intercalation of serine molecules. The serine molecules inserted in the interlayer space of kaolinite molecules were arranged in a flattened monolayer configuration and partially compressed into the tetragonal holes in the silicate layer. The activation energy Ea for releasing the pre-intercalated molecule before ultimate exchanging with serine determines the intercalation degree of serine into kaolinite. Higher Ea makes the expansion of kaolinite with pre-intercalated molecules more stable, which will facilitate the final intercalation of serine. The activation energy is 6.95 kJ/mol for ethylene glycol and 21.2 kJ/mol for water, respectively, resulting in serine intercalation degree of 45%, and 85% correspondingly. The kaolinite-serine intercalation compound is expected to be applied in the pharmaceutical and cosmetics fields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cold stress is the main factor underlying the reduction in productivity of Medicago . Medicago falcata and Medicago truncatula are two subspecies of Medicago , whose geographic adaption is limited by water, salinity and temperature. However, the regulatory signaling pathway under cold stress in Medicago is unclear. In this study, we identified a gene, MfNAC3 , induced under salt, drought and cold stress. By generating the overexpression lines of MfNAC3 , we observed a typical cold-resistant phenotype under both cold-acclimated and non-acclimated conditions, featured by an increased survival rate and significantly higher expression levels of the cold-responsive genes MtCBFs and MtCASs . Further investigations revealed that this gene encodes a NAC-type transcriptional factor that is localized in the nucleus and exhibits transcription activity. By performing an electrophoretic mobility shift assay, we found that MfNAC3 could bind to the CATGTG and CACG motifs in the promoter region of MtCBF4 . Taken together, our results demonstrate that MfNAC3 exerts a positive role in cold response and provide evidence that MfNAC3 is a positive regulator of MtCBF4 . [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a study on myogenic potential of Kit+ cardiac stem cells (CSCs) for cardiomyocyte contribution in adult heart. Topics discussed include reports of caveats proposed on Kit–Cre tools for the study of Kit+ CSCs, production of Kit–Cre drivers that label all Kit+ cells efficiently without removing the endogenous Kit gene, and examining the production of new cardiomyocytes remains by noncardiomyocytes that are labeled by new Kit–Cre tools and containing stem cells.

Nowadays, the rare earths (RE) based magnetic materials with various promising functional characterizations are playing particularly important roles in present modern society and daily life. The magnetocaloric (MC) effect which is the basis of solid state magnetic refrigeration (MR) technology has been extensively investigated in various magnetic materials. In this work, a series of high quality RE -based RE 2 BaZnO 5 (RE = Gd, Dy, Ho, and Er) compounds have been fabricated and a combination of theoretical and experimental investigation has been performed in terms of the crystal structure, electronic structure, magnetic properties and magnetic phase transition (MPT) as well as the MC effects and MC performance. All the RE 2 BaZnO 5 compounds are confirmed to crystallize in the orthorhombic structure belonging to Pnma space group and with a typical semi-conductor characteristic. Based on the magnetization measurements and the first principle calculations, all the RE 2 BaZnO 5 compounds are ordering magnetically below 3 K and the ground state is of a ferromagnetic (FM) ordering for RE = Dy or Ho, whereas is of an antiferromagnetic (AFM) ordering for RE = Gd or Er, respectively. Additionally, considerable MC effects have been observed for all the RE 2 BaZnO 5 compounds which are related to the first ordered MPT for RE = Gd or Er, whereas related to the second order MPT for RE = Dy or Ho, respectively. Moreover, considerable MC effects and promising MC performance have been realized in the present RE 2 BaZnO 5 compounds, especially for the Dy 2 BaZnO 5 and Ho 2 BaZnO 5 , making them considerable for cryogenic MR applications. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • 3D nanomaterials were prepared in a single step through simultaneous etching and delamination of layered materials. • The dimensional tunability of MDC was achieved through the regulation of the crystal structure of the precursor. • The tunability of the pore structure of MDC was implemented by coupling molten salt electrolysis and chlorine etching. • The capacities of 3D Meso/Macro-carbon nanoshells were 674.8 and 501.5 mAh g−1 after 1000 cycles at 5 and 10 A g−1. 3D construction or pore-forming of carbon nanosheets brings the materials exceptional energy storage performance. However, these strategies involve complicated procedures and challenging conditions. Herein, based on the structural regulation of a MAX phase, a facile method was proposed to prepare MAX-derived carbon (MDC) with dual tunability of dimension and pore structure via molten salt electrochemical etching-gaseous sulfur delamination coupling. Polyhedral structure Ti 2 SC and highly oriented structure Ti 2 SC were transformed into 3D Mesopore carbon nanoshells (3D Meso-CNSL) and 2D Mesopore carbon nanosheets (2D Meso-CNST) in one step. By matching the decomposition voltage of TiCl x with that of PS-Ti 2 SC, Cl 2 gas generated in situ was employed to enhance the porosity of the 3D Meso-CNSL, resulting in the formation of 3D meso/macro-porous carbon nanoshells (3D Meso/Macro-CNSL) with doubled pore volume (1.45 cm3 g−1) and specific surface area (649.97 m2 g−1). The 3D Meso/Macro-CNSL exhibits excellent capacity performance and cycle stability under high current density. The capacities are 674.8 mAh g−1 and 501.5 mAh g−1 after 1000 cycles at 5 A g−1 and 10 A g−1, respectively. It is the first report on the direct delamination of MAX phases into 3D nanomaterials, presenting a new pathway for the precise regulation of the nanostructure of the MDCs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• This paper reviewed applications of machine vision in agricultural robot navigation from 2017 to 2021. • This paper summarized the challenges that machine vision needs to overcome in agricultural robot navigation. • This paper introduced development directions of machine vision in agricultural robot navigation. Many tasks in smart agriculture have further requirements for the autonomous navigation of agricultural robots. Due to irreplaceable visual information and low-cost hardware costs, machine vision (MV) is widely used in agricultural robot navigation. This paper reviewed applications of MV in agricultural robot navigation. First, the advantages, disadvantages and roles of different vision sensors and MV algorithms in agricultural robot navigation were introduced. And then, the development status of MV in agricultural robot navigation was reviewed. Finally, the challenges of MV in agricultural robot navigation were discussed. To address these challenges, this paper looks forward to the development directions of future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]